Heart and Soul
by AlphaDelta1001
Summary: Konoha Nin discover a unconscious orphan boy at the scene of a ninja attack, and bring him back to Konoha to question. With no parents and very little people willing to adopt him, the Haruno family are chosen to take him in. NarutoXSakura. DISCONTINUED
1. The Rogue

Naruto

**Naruto**

_**Heart and Soul**_

_The Demon_

"W-What the hell is h-he!" a masked man shouted as he burst through yet another wall of overgrown bushes, sprinting out onto another random split in the thick forest area he had charged into. The natural pathway that broke the thickness of the undergrowth only lasted several paces before he was forced to push his way through yet another layer of thick vines, leaves, branches and moss. If the thickness of his surroundings weren't enough, then the lack of sense of where he was going was an even bigger problem.

After all, how the heck do you know where to run when being chased by a fiend that knows the forest like the back of its own clawed hand?

To say the man was being chased by another man, a crazed murderer or a person of monstrously insane capabilities was sort of an understatement. But by the way he was acting; it was like he was being chased by a man-eating creature! The thought that he was actually being chased by a human being never escaped his mind, yet he was tripped up by the thoughts of a bloodthirsty, carnivorous creature pursuing him through this forest. He had a lot of initiative to enhance these thoughts.

His once brand-spanking new black and light grey ninja battle robes and standard issue vest and headband, were ripped and torn in all sorts of places imaginable. Of course, to say that they still resembled clothes was something to think about. The vest was so blood-drenched and shredded that it looked like red sea-weed lacked over his shoulders. His nighttime forest camo trousers looked like a pair of tattered shorts now, and his shirt and fishnets were hanging by singular threads. The man, partially masked by grey gauze straps wrapped around his head, covering his mouth and nose, looked as though he was tossed into a blender and spat out the scrap dispenser. Finally, underneath the tattered wear and guise, slashes from close-combat weapons, bruises and cuts from sharp nails could be seen protruding from the tears and exposed skin. A person would immediately think that he was mauled by a bear! But the first, terrified statement shouted aloud by this figure gave a surreal picture that it was no bear that attacked him.

Panting and sweat bullets, joined by the tell-tail signs of blood trickling down the sides of his face, the man pushed his way through thorny undercroft and barriers. He slashed away at any offending branches with a kunai, cutting his way an opening in which he could continue running. He did not stop, even though the agony in his limbs was bringing him close to passing out. Collapsing in sheer exhaustion was the last thing he wanted to do. If he faltered even for a split second, there was a good chance that he would be leaving this world sooner than he thought. He kept on running, desperate to escape his pursuer.

Suddenly, as the man quickly pushed his way through and down an open, uneven dirt pathway, he was unexpectedly set upon by what seemed like a swarm of snakes, slithering along the ground straight toward him on the route ahead. He saw the slithering formations in front of him before they reached him, which immediately triggered his reflexes. The man let out a gasp and skidded to a stop, the slippery shades also stopping before rising up into the sky above, the sounds of loud cracks, crashes and crunching booms of thunder joining them. The shadows extended their reach along with the ground that was brought up with them. The ground was the main focus, as it shaped and took the form of a giant…a behemoth with fore arms and piercing, blood red eyes. Once the nightmarish form was completed, it towered over the man with clearly visible claws.

The battered ninja let out a horrified scream and leapt into the forests to the left of the pathway, just as the artificial fiend before him struck out with the intention of grabbing him. It remained stationary, watching as its target retreated into the dense undergrowth.

"NO!" the man shouted, looking back, trailing a sweat. "Stay away from me…DEMON!"

He took to the treetops the instant he entered the forest, continuing his feverish sprint away from the 'dark spirits' chasing him. He concentrated on a side-winding retreat, moving in a zig-zaggy pattern, in an effort to throw off the fiend hunting him. The man put forth all his energy and effort in running away, and since it was dark out, he believed that he could lose whoever or whatever was chasing him. But so far, he was having no luck.

For several minutes he continued leaping from branch to branch at a faster then sprint pace, and so far, he sensed nothing. While still forwarding this obsessive game of cat and mouse, the man looked back with a grin, only for his eyes to widen when he suddenly saw a group of figure like shadows leaping through the treetops out of the corner of his eye. They were right beside him, moving through the trees just like he was! Gasping, he glanced left from his right, spotting more similar figures monkeying through the trees. They were fast; faster than even he was!

Terrified, the ninja broke track and leapt from the tree tops, landing crouched on the grassy base of the forest. He leapt away a split second later at the incoming sounds of objects zipping through the trees, breaking leaf and branch. The man jumped away just in time, as dozens of shuriken stars embedded themselves in the very spot he was once crouched.

Rolling across the dirt, the man steadied himself into a crouched stance once more, and hid himself behind a shadowy tree, eyes wide in paranoia and breathing coming out in heavy heaves. Sweating more then he was before, the man raised the kunai he was gripping iron in his right hand, the slightly rusty blade sparkling in the night, as he stared through the darkness from his hiding place. It was perfectly clear. He wasn't just being chased by one man; he was being chased by an army.

A pack! He was being hunted down by a pack of demonic beings! He would even go as far by saying he was being chased by phantoms! Every where, all around him he could hear noises: bushes rustling, sticks breaking; the atmosphere was so tense! He swallowed a mouth full of saliva, ignoring the taste of copper, and tried to calm himself. By steadying his breathing, he was able to extend his senses to try and pinpoint the location of his nearest enemy…

…and attack it!

But the noises around him were confusing him! Wherever he was to look, he would see a faint shadow sprint by, and then disappear into the darkness of the surrounding trees. It was being in the center of it all that made it highly difficult for him to even control his breathing. A panic attack was inevitable at this time.

He heard a snap of a twig go off right next to him, and he gasped. The ninja spun around, bringing his kunai up to full thrusting action, and striking at the empty space he heard the noise. His weapon sliced through the air, and pierced the side of the tree he was hiding behind with a loud thud. With his teeth gritted and eyeballs threatening to pop out of their sockets, his mind unraveled to one solid conclusion…

…he had missed…

Reeling in a quick breath of air, the ninja looked up into the tree tops above him, his knife still impaled. It was right then and there, he came face to face with the demon himself…

A cry of terror was all he was able to give out before he was cut down in a series of blade attacks and dragged up into the tree tops. A second later, his body came falling out of the treetops, and crash-landed in the middle of an open patch of grass within the area with a loud, mangling thud. It was here the ninja met his final end, all life completely ripped from his body.

Falling around the lifeless form of the corpse appeared the small, thin forms of scattered leaves, which gently swooped down onto the grass, which was now becoming stained with a pool of blood oozing out of the latest victim of the night. Once the leaves had stopped falling, silence once again blew into the forest. The light of the full-moon above shone through the trees, illuminating the body lying sprawled out and battered on the grassy plate. And if that wasn't enough, the fiend or more appropriately, person, responsible for the ruthless onslaught committed this hallow night, was still here.

The soft crunching of light footsteps was heard entering the midst of the corpse, the shadows appearing to move under the presence of the phantom. Quietly, with a steady breath, and with no signs of any exhaustion, damage, or fatigue, the figure emerged from the darkness of the trees, and stopped right above the body of the death frozen figure. The person's foot came just several inches away from the dead man's head, and the person looked down at its victim with hard, sympathetic eyes, which pierced through the darkness, yielding it.

The sight of the figure was a complete opposite to what was expected from the supposed demonic figure that terrified the soul that once existed inside the now lifeless body. It was almost as if _this_ figure was completely opposed to the form of an actual fiend, which was highly strange. The person didn't look threatening, heck he looked as though he couldn't even hurt a fly. To top it off, the figure was merely a boy, around six or seven years old.

However, his appearance still played a strong manner of deceit, which was commonly shown in the philosophical descriptions of evil entities.

This was exactly what this boy was. The present form is merely a mask hiding an even greater force beneath the flesh, as was shown now in his eyes. As the boy began to slowly sheath the blood stained duel dao swords he was holding into a single scabbard on his back, he slowly backed away into the shadows. The last trace that was to be seen of him, were the blood red eyes with black slits for pupils piercing through the darkness, before being blinked away into the night.

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	2. The Orphan

Naruto

**Naruto**

_**Heart and Soul**_

_The Orphan_

_**The next day…**_

Things seemed to quiet down after the insistent that occurred late last night. Of course, things remained silent in the long run since the bloom of the full moon, before a full-scale investigation was eventually launched in response to several calls from surrounding villages in Fire Country, reporting in some strange activities witnessed and heard just outside of their borders. These messages were sent directly to the Hidden Village in the land, Konohagakure, calling for a team of ninjas to dive into the problem. Seeing this as a simple reconnaissance mission, Sarutobi Hiruzen dispatched a small team of ninja from Konoha to check out the disturbance.

Zipping through the trees at break neck speed from the small village reporting the issue, a group of figures could be seen making their way through to a clearing, several hundred meters out from the perimeter fence of the minor colony. Within seconds since the synchronization of their mission, the six sound warriors soon appeared in the center of the clearing. Two by two, they phased into sight, trailing wind and leaves with them upon their apparition. They each appeared in low, crouched landing states, before slowly pulling themselves up into correct standing positions. Immediately, the figures could be identified as ninja from the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

The first three ninja were identified as standard Konoha Jonin (or somewhere close to that level), three high level ninja reputedly stated as the cream and corn for this kind of mission. The key reason Jonin were dispatched onto this mission, was that the client calling for it was unsure whether to identify the cause as highly dangerous or mere vandalism even Genin could deal with. Therefore, three Jonin were sent in to treat the infection.

The first of the three shinobi was a man of muscular build, wearing a long sleeved top, standard gi trousers, a green vest with scroll pouches, a thin, raven beard, spiky hair of a similar color, and a cigarette slipped into the corner of his lips, though was not lit. He also wore the basic headband over his forehead, with the symbol of the Land of Fire imprinted on it. He looked quite tough, considering his size and appearance, and his solid face clearly defined from years of experience on the field, was no exception. The second was a woman, wearing a unique combination of red, white and black figure hugging robes, with a short skirt and fish-nets underneath the kimono like design. This meant for easier movement and flexibility. Furthermore, the woman had flawless, glowing skin, with red eyes of rosary beauty, and long black hair as shiny as the night sky. She also wore a headband, with her hair laced out of it and hanging over the actual material strapping the head protector. Though she was a green at this, it was great for her to gain more field experience from this. Finally, there was the middle-man, a ninja with white, spiky hair arranged in a very unique style, and a cloth mask over his mouth and nose. He wore a similar outfit to his other comrade, with the main differences being in his person, persona, build, being, and the fact he was the only one wearing a mask of the three. Peculiarly enough, he also had his headband slipped over his left eye, concealing it as if to hide some sort of secret weapon.

The other three ninja, however, were much more different from the first three, yet looked more alike then given. They were a: two men, one woman team as well; only they were dressed much different from the other ninja. The first was a man wearing dark green battle robes with yellow linings. Underneath the long sleeved robe, he wore dark green trousers to match with black, leather sandals that are shin height, although the robe concealed most of. Also, aside from the long sleeves that concealed black, leather gloves and secret shuriken launchers on his arms, he also had the Konoha symbol imprinted in yellow on his back, along with a Ying-Yang symbol on the chest, its outer linings gold. He also wore a Vietnamese straw hat with a small, golden spike tip protruding from the top. The hat was held down by regular bands, and the Konoha symbol was also imprinted on the front of the hat. The man also had a strong, firm face with a scar on his right cheek, brown eyes piercing from under the hat's shadow. The other male ninja wore a similar outfit, only he had white gauze wrapped around his forehead with a Ying-Yang symbol inscribed in red and white on the material. He also had black hair instead of brown, with red eyes like the woman from the other team. The woman on their team however, wore more loosely fitted robes similar to theirs, only for girls, with two more cuts added to the back of the shorter robe, a leather belt wrapped around her waist, and brown hair wrapped into a long ponytail. She also had piercing green eyes, and flawless skin. These three are members of the Kai-lo Shinobi, an organization in Konoha set up by the Forth Hokage as an elite team that placed their loyalty to the people, their village and their leader. Their ideology was to protect Konoha and their land, and to serve the Hokage to the best of their abilities. Since the Forth Hokage's death, they still remain loyal to the present Hokage in power, but maintain their respects to Minato.

Upon getting to their feet, the six began scanning the area around them, before returning their eyes to the center so that they could see everyone. The white or silver haired Jonin of the group nodded his head and placed his hands on his hips.

"Okay…" he said, breathing out, "this is the spot where the villagers first witnessed the disturbance, supposedly a fight between ninjas. Our mission is to confirm these disturbances, and report back to Konoha as soon as we've finished our sweep…"

"And if we happen to find any foreign ninja or bodies…" the robed man with the scar, obviously the leader, began to query.

"If any enemy ninja are encountered, dispatch with them posthaste. However, if there happen to be any homeland ninja in the area, detain them immediately for questioning," the silver haired man continued, looking between his teammates and those of the scarred shinobi. "If we are to come across any bodies, bring them back here!" he continued, drawing a shuriken knife from his pouch and throwing it in between their group, marking the spot with ease. "This will be our rendezvous point, and the task is simple: sweep the area in six directions starting from here! Make sure to double-check on any areas you may have overlooked. Report back here in half-an-hour for further orders!"

They all nodded in response. The silver haired Jonin then turned back to his teammates, pointing to both of them in turn. "Kurenai, Asuma…take my left and right flanks. Just because we're breaking up, doesn't mean we have to break team formation!" The ninja then turned to the other three ninja patiently waiting across from him. "Kai-lo Shinobi, you sweep the field opposite of us! Signal if you need any assistance." Although, in the back of his mind, he figured they wouldn't need it.

After receiving final nods of assurance from the ninja present, they quickly turned heel and shot off into the woods, leaving the clearing behind to perform their scouting mission. Nothing was heard from then on in; accept for the chorus of singing birds, the sounds of chatting squirrels, and the occasional rustle of trees from the ninja making their way through the woods. It didn't take them long to make it a hundred meters out, and five minutes to make it barely over half a kilometer. Whatever the case, they were making good timing on their mission.

With every meter they covered, the distance between them increased, giving them even greater areas they needed to scout. The team primarily used the tree tops, as it served as excellent vantage points for their search, even though they found nothing in the first few minutes. The ninja identified as Kakashi Hatake: the Sharingan Warrior, made use of his obtuse eyesight to bring about the widest and longest range with his pupils imaginable. The Sharingan he had underneath his headband slowed the world around him when he started using it, enabling him to capture accurate enough images of every turn he made. Looking from left to right in a constant rhythm enhanced his range, and he could do that while traveling at phenomenal speeds. The other ninja improvised with their sharp eye sights as well, even though they didn't have the same doejutsu as Kakashi did.

Eventually, the search took them to a kilometer out of the center, the exact positions and status of each ninja unknown as they combed their areas from top to bottom. The situation quickly grew into a hunt for a needle in a haystack, as they attempted to find any trace of evidence of a skirmish; anything that could settle this mystery once and for all. But try as they might, they could not minimize the field they were put into. So, they would go by the schedule they were given and the scrolls they were taught from.

Leaping from branch to branch, Kakashi continued his sweep, eyes shifting constantly with every jump. It was then after passing a brush of bushes, the silver haired Jonin suddenly spotted something out of the corner of his eye, and glanced to his left. Landing on the branch he had aimed for when he unexpectedly marked out the said target, he stopped and shifted, focusing both his eyes on the area a couple of trees away. He quickly made sense of the sight as a clue, and lowered his headband over his left eye again. Leaping from his position, he sprinted over to the area he had marked out, and stopped right beside what he immediately recognized as ash.

Looking down at the landmark from his height, the Jonin could see that the mark covered an area of roughly ten meters squared, which was mainly estimation since the mark was uneven. Judging from the stretch of the marks and the charred gradient, as well as the stench of burnt grass, Kakashi knew that this mark was made from an exploding weapon. N/A accuracy with a 50 to 50 chance of actually hitting a target, the device used was most likely a ninja bomb-bomb or a kunai charge. Those things were nasty, no matter what the level of explosion. However, the experience prone ninja had a feeling that this was no ordinary scorch mark in the ground.

Kneeling down, the ninja ran a finger over the earth, and looked at the traces he had picked up on his digit tip. Raising it up to his eyes, he was able to get a good look at the dark powder. It was definitely ash, but the actual make up of the ash was off from regular grass burns. From the looks of it, the ash he had scooped up and was looking at, at this very moment, were the remains of a ninja. It became all too obvious to Kakashi, as he carefully reached into the surface of black, and pulled up a charred, metal plate with a Sound Nin insignia etched into its gritty surface. He ran his thumb over it to make sure, and was soon settled that he was looking at a poor soul that was incinerated by an incredibly powerful weapon.

"_Hmm…maybe it wasn't a weapon at all. No ordinary kunai charge or bomb could incinerate a person! There would at least be bits and pieces of the victim lying around, and I would be able to see them,"_ Kakashi thought, placing his chin in the groove between his thumb and finger. His mind continued to wander around this mystery. _"It must have been a Fireball Jutsu of some kind…a powerful one at that. But it would have to have been a compressed one; otherwise this entire area would be showing the signs of fire damage. Yet there are none…"_ His eyes glanced around; taking note of the untouched trees and shiny grass that was left to lie alone by the fire._ "This poor fellow was burnt on the spot…disintegrated by a single blast engulfing only him and a limited area. Such control suggests incredibly powerful experience level with fire and chakra…dangerous! I've never seen anything like it!"_

It was then another thing caught his eye. Glancing up to his right, Kakashi spotted a chime of a spark, a shining light reflected off of the surface of something metallic. Encouraged by this sight, the ninja stood up and slowly strolled over to the spot he saw the light come from, and stopped in front of a large apple tree. Reaching over, he gripped the handle of a kunai knife embedded in the side of the tree, and yanked it out. He analyzed the surface smoothness of the weapon, craftsmanship and ownership of the weapon for a second, before glancing to his right again. As expected, he spotted several more knives embedded in separate trees along the perimeter of the small area, the black weapons sparkling in the sunlight.

"_From the looks of it…the Sound ninja was trying to hit something…but what?" _Kakashi thought, tossing the knife in his hand a couple of times before pocketing it. He went to check the other knives, but found no traces of blood or other materials that could identify what the person was attacking. On top of that, more scans of the area showed no signs of another enemy Nin. It was bewildering! If there had been a ninja-on-ninja attack, then there had to be at least some evidence of a second party member to prove that!

But there was nothing! Not even a shred of clothing…

"_It looks as though we're dealing with an elite ninja…a rogue warrior with deadly skills…" _Kakashi thought, glaring over at the large patch of ash several feet away. _"This is becoming even more troublesome…"_

Realizing time was short, Kakashi collected up whatever evidence he could scrounge from the field, before setting off back for the rendezvous point. Taking the same route he used to arrive at his end destination, he quickly made his way to the center clearing, looping round, over and under branches he had passed before. For several minutes, he stuck tooth and nail on his fallback, before eventually arriving at his destination a minute later then expected. When he arrived at the clearing, he found that Asuma and two of the Kai-lo Shinobi were already there, waiting for the others to return. Kakashi instantly realized that they hadn't been waiting for long.

All eyes turned to the silver haired Jonin as he landed on the edge of the clearing. Upon his appearance, the Kakashi immediately straightened up from his landing and began walking over to the group, at the same time watching Asuma slip his hands into his pockets and stare intently at his Jonin comrade. Once the masked ninja stopped several feet beside him, his friend spoke up.

"Well…did you find anything?" the man asked, pulling the cigarette out from between his lips. Kakashi lowered his head slightly in response, drawing his hand from his vest side pocket and tossing one of the kunai he had over to his teammate. The other Jonin caught the knife and looked over it, immediately spotting the Sound Nin identification mark on the base of its small blade. He raised his eyebrow at the sight as he looked it over with his eyes and fingertips.

"I found several of those hanging around a small clearing one and a half kilometers away from here. There wasn't anything else to find…save for that and _this_…" Kakashi continued, pulling up the charred head-guard he had found at the scene. Asuma blinked in surprise, as did the other two Konoha Nin standing on the sidelines. The silver haired Jonin scrutinized the plate again before throwing it over to one of the Kai-lo standing not too far from him, so that they could take a closer look. "I found it in a patch of ash in the same area I found the kunai. Whoever these items belonged too has, with no doubt, been incinerated…"

Asuma flinched. "Really?" he queried, earning a nod from the reporting Jonin. "Were there any traces that could give us a clue on who was responsible for this killing?" Kakashi shook his head.

"Nothing that I could see," the ninja replied.

"What about the subject's remains? Could you tell what killed him?" the female Kai-lo Shinobi asked, hanging the Sound Nin head-guard to her comrade.

"He was obviously burnt to death. It wasn't a kunai bomb. That's not powerful enough to completely turn flesh into ash. It was a Fireball Jutsu of some kind. But the diameter of the ash pile and burns, as well as the lack of surrounding damages, suggests that the attack was compressed to a minimum blast radius, yet powerful enough to deliver the necessary incineration capability," Kakashi stated. The woman Kai-lo Shinobi raised an eyebrow, her eyes still overshadowed.

"But all Fireball Jutsus gain their power from the amount of chakra drawn from the user, and poured into the attack in the form of more fire with a much higher ferocity level. The standard Fireball Jutsu gets its strength from the amount there is. The more fire there is; the more effective it can be. Only then is it capable of leaving a ninja incinerated," the woman stated, lowering her head and rubbing her chin in thought. "But from what you're saying, it was no ordinary Jutsu…"

"My guess is that it was a controlled attack," Kakashi said, crossing his arms and glancing away. "Unless the person's control over it was perfect, which is extremely difficult to master, I don't see how it was possible…"

At that exact moment, the last Kai-lo warrior appeared from the woods. Quick as ever, he arrived at the center of the clearing, and in the middle of the group, dumped three corpses right at their feet. Asuma and Kakashi staggered back in surprise, the scarred man who had brought the bodies in looking up with a serious expression, while still kneeling over the pile of bodies.

"It's just what I expected, Kakashi," the elite stated, getting to his feet and placing his fists together, his robes hiding his hands in a ceremonial way. "Sound Ninja…or what's left of them. I found these three lying around my area…and other large burn patterns as well…"

Kakashi blinked. "What?"

"More ninja? What could have done this to them?" Asuma asked as he approached the pile of bodies, pulling the one from the top pile and rolling him over on the ground. When he glanced at his face, he could see that the man was wearing a gas mask of some kind with only one eye exposed. He wore a light grey and dull purple combination outfit, the standard Sound Nin outfit. The only unique difference was the mask and the weapons he had sheathed in his belt: drumstick shaped numb-chucks.

"Not sure…there was nothing that could tell exactly what could have killed them. But the wounds and injuries they received certainly gives away the identity of a particular culprit," the head Kai-lo ninja stated, bringing his hands behind his back, fists together as he backed off a bit, allowing the others to get a better look at the three victims. "Claw marks and slice marks: close combat weapons, most likely from the same or two different types of weapons. I'm assuming the slash marks were made by a kunai or shuriken, whereas the claw marks were made by nails. The jagged edges of each entrance wound suggest sharpened nails, and not your particular claw-cuff style weapons. Whoever did this to them knew where to hit to kill…"

"Otherwise they would have bled to death," Asuma said, looking over at Kakashi. "I'm not surprised they're not dead. This one suffered fatal strikes to the neck, chest and stomach."

"All of them pointing to an incredibly skilled assassin and fighter, using _Tiger Style_ martial arts," the scarred man stated.

"Hence the claw marks…" Kakashi whispered, nodding his head in understanding. "It can be deadly and hard to overcome against one who has mastered the art…"

"Not to mention the high level of skill the individual has in using Fireball Jutsus," the other male Kai-lo Shinobi said, lowering his head as he reaffirmed another fact already shared. "From the looks of it, more then one Sound Ninja has been incinerated…"

"That's a lot of chakra," Asuma stated, standing up and leaving the body of the ninja to lie peacefully for the moment.

While the Jonin in the area were pondering over what or who could have killed this group of Sound Nin Chunin, they suddenly sensed Kurenai return to the scene. In a split second, she popped out of thin air several meters away from their group in a puff of white smoke. Upon her appearance, she made her way over to the group with, what the ninjas could see, another body cradled in her arms. When she made her way closer, the group could see that the body she was carrying wasn't another corpse to add to the pile. Kakashi, Asuma and the Kai-lo took up looks of surprise when they saw their comrade bring the body of what looked like a young boy up to them.

"What the?" the scarred Kai-lo Shinobi mouthed.

"Who's that, Kurenai?" Kakashi asked.

"Who did you find?" Asuma also questioned, approaching the raven haired Chunin with a look of concern on his face.

She knelt down low and laid the body down on the grass at her feet, looking down at him with a serious expression in play. Around this time, all the Jonin in the area became curious and approached her, making sure they kept their distance so to leave breathing space for them. "I don't know. But I found him about fifty meters out from some ash patches that had some charred kunai and head-guards lying in the piles…"

"Let me guess, they belonged to Sound Nin," Kakashi shot in the dark. Kurenai looked up and nodded, her eyes firm and truth filled.

"Yup…but it was hard to tell from their fried forehead protectors…" she said, before returning her attention to the boy lying at her feet, placing her hand on his chest and checking to make sure he was still alive. When the group gathered, they could now see what the boy looked like.

He was very young, around six or seven years old, and had blonde, spiky hair with a nice highlight to it. His skin was a bit bruised and dirty, but that came as to no concern, but the whiskers on his face did. The three, light lines on his cheeks looked like whispers, and from touch seemed like it, only they were plastered to his face permanently, like they were his own. He also looked quite healthy; accept for his present state, which was asleep. His breathing was normal, as was his facial expression, which bore that constant youthful illumination. He basically wore a light brown, tattered shirt, and faded blue shorts with lots of rips in them. Aside from brown, regular sandals, the boy also had a makeshift belt around him, which tied a sheathed duel dao sword on his back. Finally, aside from tacky, fingerless wooly gloves, he also wore a perfect condition scarf around his neck. It was a black scarf, with orange flames on the ends and flickering every now and again along its length, outlined or sometimes highlighted in yellow. It looked pretty cool, and it suited him well.

Kakashi, thinking to himself, while at the same time marveling at the boys features, knelt down beside Kurenai and began examining the boy a little closer. Without any objection from his female teammate, he gently picked up one of the boy's arms and brought his hand into his palms, as he checked the fingernails and gloves for any sign of blood stains. He checked both arms, and found none. The only traces of damage were minor bruises, but they were old ones still in healing process. There was nothing on the boy that showed that he was the cause for the recent genocide that occurred here. He released the boy's arms, checking his forehead for his temperature.

"He seems to be alright…" Kakashi whispered to himself, completely setting aside the investigation and his suspicions of the child. "Does he have any form of identification or something?"

Kurenai shook her head. "None. I checked him already. The only possessions he has are the clothes on his back and this sword," she said, reaching to grab the weapon's handle, only to have the boy move around uncomfortably so that her grip missed. She chuckled in sort amusement. She looked up at the other Jonin, who were staring down at him with curious expressions. "As you can see…he doesn't want anybody touching it, _even_ when he's asleep…"

Kakashi chuckled. "Well…isn't that something…"

"He's very self-aware…an excellent trait for a ninja," the scarred Kai-lo warrior stated with a small smile.

Asuma smirked, biting down on his cigarette. "And you have to admit, he's a cute little fella."

"If he wasn't carrying that sword around with him, then he would be a _descent_ cute little fella," the Kai-lo with the headband said, grinning.

"I wonder where he got it from?" the Kai-lo woman teammate queried.

"We won't know for sure unless he wakes up," Kakashi said, folding his arms over his chest. "We'll take him back to Konoha, and check him into the hospital to have his condition double-checked for any internal injuries and such. We'll also have to destroy these bodies. Wouldn't want anyone walking through here and finding a group of enemy ninja corpses, would we? Word might get out to the Sound Village that they'd lost more men in our region, and will blame our village more for their problems."

"Heh…good point," Asuma exclaimed.

"Kurenai, you, Asuma and the others head back to the village. Kama and I will stay behind to get rid of these bodies," the silver haired Jonin stated. The designated ninja nodded their heads once, and left with the sleeping boy and the evidence they had collected on hand. The two that stayed behind were Kakashi and the Kai-lo Shinobi with the scar across his face. Once their comrades had left, the two took their places around the three rotting corpses, their eyes plastered on them with serious expressions on their faces.

For a moment, the two stood in silence. Their heads were swimming with the thoughts of suspected culprits or predators that could have attacked these Sound Ninja. They used the one minute they had to attempt to unravel the mystery on hand, but came up with nothing. Letting go of the silence for now, Kama glanced up at Kakashi with narrowed eyes and began to speak.

"So who do you think killed these Sound Ninja?" he asked. Kakashi shrugged, his eyes never leaving the bodies.

"Don't know," the Jonin replied, letting out a breath of air. "If it was some of our own ninja responsible for this attack, then the Hokage wouldn't have sent us out here if he already knew about it…" Kama nodded, and glanced back down at the bodies. From here, he quickly slapped his gloves hands together and began forming hand signs, identifying the following technique as a Fireball Jutsu.

"Right…" Kama answered; ending his series of hand signs and bringing his right finger and thumb up to his lips. Taking in a deep intake of air, he let it all out at once in one breath. Orange flames shot out of his lips, engulfing the bodies in a fiery ball that would sure reduce their corpses to nothingness in half an hour or so…

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	3. My name is Naruto Uzumaki

Naruto

**Naruto**

_**Heart and Soul**_

_My name is Naruto Uzumaki_

_**Hours later…**_

After Kurenai and her team had checked into Konoha at the front gates, they immediately took the sleeping boy to the hospital to have him checked out by the doctors. In no time at all, the hospital's staff had the boy put to bed, and looked over by the head kunoichi. For the entire duration of the wait, Kurenai and the woman ninja of the Kai-lo Shinobi stood by the door, and waited for the nurse's diagnosis. Asuma and the other shinobi had left them to their own devices to deliver their reports to the Hokage, since the task of passing on the individual reports could be made by one or two people, and had to be done so immediately upon arrival. However, the Hokage would still need to see the entire team by the end of the day. For the next hour after arriving, Kurenai and her temporary teammate waited for the nurse to finish her checks of the yellow haired boy, arms crossed and standing by the door and looking in through its circular window.

Letting out a sigh, Kurenai lowered her head and closed her eyes for a moment, the anticipation bottling up inside her to an unbearable level. The Kai-lo woman was standing at attention across the hallway, her hands behind her back and head lowered, her hat hiding her face and expression. When it seemed the two would be waiting on their own for the time being, they got the biggest surprise when Kakashi and Kama suddenly appeared on the scene in a poof of white smoke. Kurenai jumped at their other two teammates arrivals, whereas the other female ninja glanced up with overshadowed eyes, but a clear expression of slight surprise engraved on her pretty face. When the smoke cleared, Kakashi walked up to the door Kurenai was standing by, and peered in through the window to see what was happening.

"Sure took your time getting here, Kakashi…" Kurenai said, arms crossed and watching the masked ninja make his analysis through the porthole. "But that should be expected…since you're always late…"

"With good reason this time," the silver haired Jonin said, glancing at the raven haired woman with a stoic expression in play. Well, how could you tell at all under that mask of his?

Kurenai smirked, closing her eyes and looking away. The expression she used promised the release of devious thoughts, most likely in relation to Kakashi's tardiness. That's something her teammate did not like, as well as the other two Kai-lo shinobi standing by. "As long as it wasn't reading those _Icha Icha_ novels of yours, then I guess you do have a good reason…"

"Hey!" Kakashi protested, slipping his hands into his pockets and glaring at Kurenai from his one eye. "Those novels are a work of pure genius! There is no other series on the face of this planet like it!"

"Definitely…not a thrilling combination like _Make-out Paradise_," Kurenai said with a hint of a laugh etched in her tone. "Seriously, how can you find a perverted novel, on top of that, a semi-autobiography, with such a dirty plot in the man's life story, so interesting?" Kakashi was about to comment on her choice of words, before quickly reconsidering what he was about to say. Clearing his throat and adjusting his shirt collar, the silver haired Jonin blushed lightly and looked away. Clearing his throat again, he slipped his hands into his pockets again, and began to speak in a hesitant, paced voice.

"I'm a uhh…umm… (cough)…a fan of… (sigh)…" The Jonin made several hand movements, which was a fairly animated way of expressing his next thoughts. "I admire a man with quality and taste…and the writer of _Icha Icha Paradise _is a believer, if not, _master_ of… (coughs)…the type of quality…I admire in a uhh…individual!" Kakashi said these in the most theatrical ways possible, which made Kurenai sweat drop and the two Kai-lo agents standing by look at him with odd expressions in play.

"You admire what now?" Kama asked.

Kakashi shook his head, glaring at Kurenai with a flushed face. "Can we please get back to the matter at hand?!" the man said aloud, trying to clear the awkward silence that fell amongst them. Clearing his throat once more, the Jonin continued his rampant of questioning. "How's the kid doing?"

Kurenai sighed and glanced through the window again, her eyes settling on the boy lying in the bed peacefully, the kunoichi checking on him looking over his hands for any cuts, bruises or other injuries he may have on them. "So far so good…but the nurse hasn't finished her analysis on him. It's amazing though…" Kurenai exclaimed, glancing round at Kakashi with a serious yet lightly astonished expression on her face, "to think that that boy was right in the middle of that tussle last night. I wonder if he knows anything about it."

"Probably…" Kakashi replied. "It might be a while till we get an answer though…"

"Actually…I wouldn't be so sure about that…" Kurenai exclaimed, stepping back as the door opened up in front of them. Kakashi also stepped back, all eyes falling on the kunoichi as she made her stand before the four of them. Silence dawned on the group as the red haired nurse finished writing down her final notes onto her note-pad, before looking up at the anxious faces staring right back at her.

"Well…" the female Kai-lo spoke, her voice low and filled with anticipation.

Smiling, the woman slipped her pen into her ear and nodded to the four waiting shinobi. "The boy is fine. His vitals show no signs of recent trauma, and he's in perfect shape. I've never seen such a healthy child. Though he was a bit dirty, he's doing fine. He's been sleeping for a while, and I think he'll be waking up shortly…" Kakashi and Kurenai nodded in understanding, and turned to their two waiting comrades.

"You may want to go get the Hokage," the silver haired Jonin said. "He would want to meet this child when he wakes up…"

Nodding, the two Kai-lo agents vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving Kakashi and Kurenai to tend to further business. Bidding the kunoichi thanks, they entered the room to check up on the boy themselves. When they did, they found themselves in a single-bedded room with the white curtains drawn back so that they could see the yellow haired rascal fully. Beside his bed sat the standard table with a glass of water, some cheese, lettuce and carrots on a plate, and a towel. Also, next to his bed, propped up against the wall was the boy's sword, sheathed and sparkling clean. On the washing rack on the other side of the room, folded up neatly was his scarf, gloves, shirt, shorts and sandals. He was now dressed in a hospital issued shirt and shorts, and had been cleaned up by the nurses. And still, without any surprise, he was sleeping peacefully under bedcovers…

Kakashi and Kurenai walked over to him, both of them stopping beside his bed and staring down at the boy's face. Arms folded and expressions fixed, they analyzed his face for a moment, before breaking out small smiles. The Sharingan Jonin of the pair chuckled and glanced over at his teammate, a smile beneath his mask.

"I guess Asuma was right, he is kind of cute…"

"In an adorable sense," Kurenai said, smiling. "He's still very young. Yet I wonder what the kid could have been doing with this…" she said, walking over to his bed corner and picking up his sword from wall. Upon curling her fingers around its sheath and handle, she brought it up to her height and began looking it over, ignoring the belt that was secured around it so that it didn't get caught on anything. Kakashi was also looking over at it, hands in his pockets now.

"I don't think he would appreciate you touching that, Kurenai…" Kakashi said, reaching into his back pouch and drawing his Icha Icha novel. Walking over to the wall near the door, the silver haired Jonin leant up against it and flicked through the pages to the chapter he was up too. Once he had reached the section he had last stopped on, he flipped open the book into a comfortable grip and, while blindly speaking up, quickly became deeply entranced in the story. "After all, you saw how he reacted when you tried grabbing it before…"

"He just murmured in his sleep…" the raven haired woman objected, grabbing the handle with her right hand while glancing round at her teammate. "Come on…that doesn't tell you anything…"

"Suit yourself," Kakashi replied, letting out a sigh and moving onto the next page. "Don't say I didn't warn you…"

Ignoring him, Kurenai went on to scanning the weapon she held gently in her vice grip. Running a finger over the handle, she began making detailed statements on its weight and design. The scabbard was standard black, with a golden tip on the end formed into the image of fire, one of the flames circling to form the symbol of the Konoha Nin. Another flame formed into a Japanese symbol on the other side, which represented _Peace_. At the hilt of the sheath where the scabbard opened up to allow the sword to be tucked, there was another golden groove around it shaped in a similar manner to the base, which held the blade firmly in place so that it didn't fall out. Moving further down it, Kurenai saw that the weapon's handle had the standard dao hand guard, only more styled out. It was gold with markings of two foxes moving around it on the top, and two dragons on the other side. Furthermore, the handle was formed out of strange leather she could no identify, but looked really tough, yet not taxing on human skin. This made for good grip. The pommel of the sword were wide enough to prevent grip from slipping, the base holding the Ying and Yang symbol, that had a split down the center, dividing them. The weapons also had red strings and pom-poms hanging from two places on the pommel, traditional style yet not obstructive.

Curiosity getting the best of her, she decided to unsheathe the weapon. Carefully, so not to make too much noise, she drew it, carefully setting down the scabbard and looking at the blade much more carefully. Kakashi continued to read on without a fuss, and happily murmured to himself when he arrived at an interesting twist in the story. While he was reading, Kurenai was, with an awed look on her face, looking over the elegant blade with interest. The weapon's cold steel was no less then perfect, and had a nice clean shine to it. It was a double-bladed weapon, meaning it could cut and block on both sides without damage. She suspected the blade to hold much more spiritual qualities, which must have been incredible. What was even more unique was the craftsmanship. The blades flowed smoothly, and were extremely well balanced. On one side of the weapon, the blade was silver, almost white in its shine, with symbols on it that read, _'The Rising of the Moon'_. On the other side, the blade was all black, with similar symbols on it reading, _'The Flowing of the Ocean'_.

Blinking, the woman brought the sword up into a two handed grip and gave it a swing. "Wow…impressive dao. I've never seen one like this before…"

"You've rarely seen one, Kurenai," Kakashi said over his book. "How many ninja carry one, anyway?"

"You see ninja carrying scythes, kunai, needles, katanas, pitchforks…but you hardly see weapons like these being carried around by people. Good quality weapons such as this one are pretty hard to come across…" Kurenai concluded, swinging the blade again, making a loud slice sound through the air. Of course, it was this sound that would prove to be her undoing.

The second the sound was made, the once sound sleeping boy suddenly awoke, his eyes flying open. Without a word or shout exclaimed, the yellow haired boy leapt out of bed, throwing back the covers and dropping into a crouched fighting stance. Quicker then Kurenai could react, the boy jumped at her and landed on her collar bone on bare feet. She staggered back, the commotion catching Kakashi's attention, the man glancing up in surprise. Growling, the boy grabbed Kurenai's wrist, the one holding his sword, and in a blink of an eye, disarmed her. Causing her to release his weapon, he grabbed it while it was in mid-throw and he kicked off of the woman. Kurenai fell to the ground with a loud thud, gripping her wrist from the soreness of being disarmed, and stared in shock at the boy who was now standing, dropped in a fighting stance a top of the bed.

Gritting his teeth, the boy grabbed the handle of his sword on two sides, and pulled it apart. Twirling both halves of the weapon in both hands, he positioned them in a threatening way that said to all that he meant trouble. It was only then Kurenai and Kakashi could clearly see that the weapon was really a duel dao blade and not a single dao blade. They were two-halves of the same weapon, one blade being black, and the other silver. It was a pretty impressive weapon.

Kurenai, staggering to her feet, while kept under the eyes of the glaring boy, stretched out her bruised wrist and stared back in surprise. "Wow…now _that_…I didn't see coming…"

Kakashi chuckled, getting up off of the wall and looking at the sight in amusement. The boy, spotting the other ninja, spun the sword he held in his right hand and pointed it at him, while keeping the other one primed. The sight caused the silver haired Jonin to stop, and Kurenai to look between the two with widened eyes. Of course, what she felt before was pure strength that was able to take her down, and that got her worried. If the boy was capable of doing that, then who knows what else he was capable of performing.

For a minute or so, the three of them stood in silence, eyeing the opposing party cautiously. Nobody said a word, even though the situation called for it to calm the other one down. However, nobody spoke for risk of getting attacked, and since no one wanted to get hurt, the perfect thing to bide time was a stand down. That was what the yellow haired boy was doing. He wanted answers, and the best way to get them was to use this method.

As the clock ticked on, the three of them continued to stand around and do nothing. But then, just before either of them could say anything, they all suddenly heard a voice open up from the doorway, surprising all of them.

"Now there's no need for that, kid," an old voice churned up from the silence, Kurenai and Kakashi sucked in sharp breaths of air, before quickly turning towards the entrance of the room to confirm their fears. As expected, they saw Sarutobi himself standing in the doorway. The Third Hokage, wearing his funny hat complete with robe, pipe and all, was standing in the open doorway, flanked by two Kai-lo Shinobi. These were two different ones from before, both of them males and both of them with their hands behind their backs. It was a splitting image of the country's leader and the royal guard, only this guard was much more field fighting prone.

Sarutobi smiled at the boy, who was glaring at him with uncertainty shining in his bright, blue eyes. "My…but I must say, you're a very unique child, indeed. Being able to retrieve your weapon, and at the same time disarming a fully fledged Chunin ninja! A normal six your old boy with: no taijutsu training whatsoever…that's rather phenomenal." This statement made Kurenai blush and look down in embarrassment and shame. It earned her a rather amused glance from the Hokage, before the old man turned back to the boy and stepped forward, raising his right hand to him in a conceding manner. "You can put down the swords now…we mean you no harm…"

The boy glared at the old man for a moment, glancing around the room at the other individuals standing closest to him. With a single hand gesture, Sarutobi ordered Kakashi and Kurenai to back down, which they did, and transfixed to relaxed stances with an unthreatening appearance. The yellow haired boy watched them back down, and after seeing this was convinced that they did not mean to do him ill. Face contracting to a calmer, innocent expression, the boy closed his eyes and spun his swords around. In a highly skilled form of disengagement, he sheathed his swords into his scabbard which was lying on the bed beside him. Once he did this, he looked back up at the elderly man and hopped off of the bed. Smiling, he placed his right fist into his left palm and held it out in a traditional style of bow. Although this one was not Land of Fire custom type of bow, Sarutobi recognized it as one of foreign custom, and bowed to the boy in kind.

After exchanging greetings, the yellow haired boy went about trying to identify his surroundings. His eyes tearing away from the old man, he began walking slowly around his white-walled room, looking up at the ceiling and at the various pieces of equipment and furniture in curiosity. Kakashi and Kurenai watched him with confused eyes, as he came up to each of them and began looking at them closely. As innocent as a five year old, he circled each of them, looking them up and down. Sarutobi did not find the boy's actions out of the ordinary, but indeed found it entertaining. The boy took an extra level of analysis, and took in the scent of both Kurenai and Kakashi by leaning close to them, and just sniffing the air a couple of times. After which, the boy stepped back and smiled up at each of them, before turning towards the Hokage and looking at him in question.

Taking the boys confused look as his queue, Sarutobi smiled and walked toward him, left hand behind him and pipe held in his left hand. The end prodding his chin, he nodded towards the boy with a friendly look etched all over his face and stance. "I am Sarutobi Hiruzen, Third Hokage of the hidden village of Konohagakure, or, translated, the Village Hidden in the Leaves. I'm simply the leader of this village, and the others you see here…" he continued, gesturing towards Kakashi, Kurenai and his Kai-lo guard, "are the defenders and soldiers of this village, the Konoha Ninja. The man with the spiky hair and the mask is Kakashi Hatake, and the woman to your left is Kurenai Yuhi. Both of them are high-level, elite ninja that help serve and protect the village. They are the ones that brought you here…" He approached the boy and knelt down in front of him, watching the youngster follow him intently; his curious expression on full blaze. Sarutobi smiled as he gestured towards the boy with his pipe. "And what's your name, young man?"

The boy blinked, staring at the old man for a moment or so, before suddenly finding an interest in the floor at his feet. His expression becoming shallow, the boy closed his eyes tightly and looked away, as if his incoming thoughts were becoming a little bit overly bearable. The Hokage took up a look of confusion and started to become more concerned for the child, as his nature as the village's leader intended him to be.

"You don't like to talk much, do you?" the old man exclaimed, sprouting a small, reassuring smile. "It's okay. There's no need to hide. You can speak freely here. Nobody's going to hurt you or stop you…"

For a few more seconds, the boy quietly dived into his thoughts, plowing through his mind quickly and looking for the answer. All the while, he was conflicting with the ideas and consequences that would befall him. It was the reassuring words from the kind old man that allowed him to overcome his fears, and emerge with the appropriate approach and answer. Opening his eyes slowly, the boy looked back towards the Third, and with a innocent look in play, the boy gulped before speaking. His voice was a timid reflection of his nervousness, and his limbs were trembling slightly.

"M-My name…?" he asked. Sarutobi smiled and nodded. This encounter was spiking up the surprised interests of both Kakashi and Kurenai.

"Yes…what is your name?" the old man repeated.

The boy fisted his hands, bucking up the courage to speak. When he did, he looked up with a bright smile, and the energy returned to his face once again. "M-My name is Naruto Uzumaki!" This highlight of speech seemed like a major step for him. Although speech didn't fit well as foreplay for him, he found it a necessity to communicate once in a while.

The Third Hokage smiled brightly, nodding his head towards the boy. "Well…it is nice to meet you, Naruto," he exclaimed. The boy smiled brighter in response, his expression extremely happy and unthreatening now. It was this look that made Kakashi and Kurenai forget all about his surprising aggressive side. The old village leader grinned at the boy before continuing. "So…where are you from, young Naruto?"

The young yellow head did a double-take upon registering to this question, his smile fading away and his expression once again becoming low. With a hurt look, he lowered his head, creating a very shadowy effect to drift over his face. Sarutobi immediately took this as a daunting question to answer, and decided not to pressure the boy on it. Instead, he attempted to change his question.

"Do you have a family?"

As if flicking on a switch, Naruto instantly clicked at the question. He looked up at the old man, his expression unchanged, but his attention set more on alert. Expectedly, the boy shook his head from side to side, telling the old man that he had no parents or relatives known. The Hokage nodded in understanding, and shifted to another question.

"Do you remember what they look like, or who they are?"

It was at this question, the boy reacted once again, only this time it wasn't a mere shake of the head. Instead, he took a moment longer of thought, before looking up at the old man with a rather blank look on his face, although his eyes held a tint of saddening remembrance. "I…I remember my mom…s-she was…very kind…and very…strong. B-But I don't remember my father…very well…"

"Was he from another village?" Sarutobi asked. Naruto nodded, affirming the old man's curiosity. "Do you remember what he looked like?"

Blinking, Naruto shook his head. Kakashi and Kurenai looked up at each other, rather stoic expressions on their faces as they silently nodded toward each other, before glancing back down at him.

Sarutobi thought for a moment, finding this attempt of connection rather difficult. Eventually, he decided to change the subject altogether, and made a point towards the weapon Naruto was holding, sheathed in his right hand. He nodded towards it, smiling kindly.

"I see you're really good at using those duel swords of yours," the Third exclaimed. "Are you good at fighting?" Naruto grinned, nodding his head rather enthusiastically. Sarutobi chuckled at the energy he had in his response, and tilted his head at the yellow haired boy in curiosity. He was really beginning to like this young lad. There was that shine around him that made him all the more interesting. "Who taught you to fight?"

The boy shrugged, looking down at the floor in deep thought. "I-I taught myself…and…my mom and dad taught me a lot as well…" he replied quietly. Sarutobi raised an eyebrow, highly interested in this answer. It shed a lot of light on this boy's origins and what his parents were like, as well as what kind of upbringing he must have had. He was also finding out much about this boy's character, which was highly likeable.

"Did they tell you what to use it for?" he asked. Naruto nodded, looking up at the man.

"O-Only in self defense…sir…"

"Ahh…that's good then. Well…" the Third Hokage stood up, hands on his hips and a smile still etched on his face. He placed the pipe in his mouth, allowing it to limit himself of carrying anything. "I see you have a lot of potential in you. You have the skills and abilities to become really strong, and that's saying a lot about your future. How about it, Naruto? Would you like to stay in Konoha for a while?" The old man's question surprised the young boy, who looked up at the towering figure with wide eyes and a mouth held slightly agape. Sarutobi grinned at the yellow haired youngster with strong sincerity and honesty. "I assure you, the villagers are very kind, and the atmosphere is highly likable. Perhaps I can even find you a home here, in the village, if you're willing to become a part of it. What do you say?"

Naruto looked at his feet, his eyes widened in realization to what the old man was offering him, and he found it quite surprising that finally someone has decided to accept him. He believed that maybe he could finally find a home where he'd be safe. But past experiences continued to conflict in his mind, and mess with his thoughts. For a few moments, he continued his mental battle in silence, before eventually emerging with a firm, absolute answer. A small smile on his face, he looked up at the Hokage and nodded his head firmly, earning a kind smile from the elder and a nod in response.

"I'll see what I can do for you then, lad…" the old man exclaimed before turning around, taking the pipe back into his right hand. His eyes steadily fell upon the two shinobi standing to his right. "Kakashi, Kurenai, see to it that our new villager is given new attire, and that he is fed properly before bringing him to my office. I want to make sure he is comfortable enough before we move him into a foster family…" The two ninja nodded, and turned their eyes back to the spot Naruto once stood. However, when they saw that he was no longer standing there, they turned towards the washing rack on the opposite side of the room, and saw the boy collect the scarf that was lying there.

In an undying show of affection to this piece of clothing, the boy hugged it to his chest and sighed in happiness, knowing that the piece given to him by his father was still with him. After reuniting with his most valued article of clothing, as well as the sword he now had at his side, he felt a hand place itself on his shoulder and looked up, where he saw Kurenai smiling down at him. The raven haired woman nodded towards the entrance to his room, where Kakashi and one of the Kai-lo shinobi were standing by.

"Come on, Naruto," the red eyed female exclaimed, "Time to get you fixed into some new clothes. I can guarantee you that I'll find you something that'll make you look as dashing as ever! The girls will love it!" She explained this as she led him towards the door. Kakashi overheard her exclamations and silently snorted.

"Don't kid yourself, Kurenai," the man said, watching with hands in his pockets as she led the boy out the door. "You'll turn the boy into a male geisha the moment you make him step into that clothing department. Not everyone likes your traditional style of outfit…" The raven haired woman paused on the spot and clenched her fist, a frustration mark appearing on her forehead and seam rising from her hair. She turned around and glared agitated at the silver haired Jonin who had made that remark.

"I'll have you know, Kakashi, I'm pretty good at styling out," she growled, "Unlike some people!"

"Are you implying that my casual wear isn't appropriate," the Jonin exclaimed, his expression stoic on first glance, as he kept his actions cool. When dealing with women, he had to make sure not to press the wrong buttons. Of course, his entre of speech wasn't quite the pillow of clouds to begin with.

"First of all, I've never seen you in a casual outfit," the woman stated. "And secondly, a woman's touch is perhaps the most appropriate when it comes to deciding what looks good on a boy…"

"Sure it is…" Kakashi continued as he watched Kurenai lead a giggling Naruto out of the room. Letting out a breath of air, he began to follow in sync, passing by the Kai-lo warrior staring oddly after him. "I'm just a little concerned about what you're going to do to him in that dresser…"

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	4. My name is Sakura Haruno

**Naruto**

_**Heart and Soul**_

_My name is Sakura Haruno_

_**An hour later…**_

_**Somewhere in the Hospital…**_

"Nope…that won't do at all," Kurenai whispered, tossing aside a pink shirt that she didn't find suitable for the boy standing behind hair and watching curiously as she pushed and poked her way through the clothes line. Who knew that finding good clothes for a boy took so long? Usually teenage girls took their time skimming through attracting articles, but when looking for a combination to apply to a kid like Naruto, it was proving to be a challenging task, even for Kurenai. Already she had amassed a pile of unsuitable clothes, as well as a couple that seemed fair. But this pile compared to the other unsatisfactory items, it was like comparing Mount Everest to the Empire State Building.

Kakashi was standing by the doorway, reading his book and continually stealing glances at the pair as they looked through the piles and piles of clothing. He found little interest in shopping, and frankly didn't care about what Kurenai had in mind for the boy. Although, Naruto seemed to be having a very good idea about what he wanted to wear. The boy was looking from shirt to shirt and shorts to shorts, becoming very interested in the orange and black combination. Ignoring Kurenai's rummaging, the young boy picked up a shirt, a pair of pants, and a pair of blue sandals. Smiling, he walked over to the box sitting beside the rows of clothes hangers and hanging articles, leaning over it and rummaging through its contents. Meanwhile, Kurenai continued her endless searching.

"Just give me a second longer, Naruto! I'm getting close! I can feel it," the woman exclaimed, pushing herself into the clothing hanging in front of her and searching the deeper abyss of sewn fabrics and materials. Kakashi sighed and shook his head, turning the page of his novel.

"Keep telling yourself that, Kurenai," he whispered.

At that exact moment, Naruto emerged from the cardboard box successful, a big smile plastered on his face as he held up a pair of fingerless, black gloves, some white gauze straps and a ski mask. With his clothes in hand, he took up his bundle and disappeared in the change room, locking himself in and beginning to try on his selected items. For the next few minutes while the boy was dressing, Kurenai was having her own debate on what the boy should be wearing. Of course, her choices were not really saying much about her idea of stylizing. She was more used to picking out outfits for herself.

"Okay…red isn't a good combo with the scarf, and white just says 'shoot me'," the woman whispered, pulling out a white singlet and a red vest. The Chunin growled and tossed them aside, before moving back to filing through the rainforest of articles. "And purple definitely doesn't suit him. So if I was to add black and green, it will come up with that badass look, only more of a rebel. That definitely doesn't fit his character…" she said to herself, leaning back and rubbing her chin in thought.

"You're not very good at this, are you?" Kakashi mumbled, eyes narrowed dully towards the woman. Hearing this, the woman suddenly got a good idea, and with a grin, dived back into the clothes. Hearing the dressing room door suddenly unlock, Kakashi glanced in its direction with a curious murmur, and watched intently as the door swung open to reveal a newly and handsomely dressed Naruto standing smack-bang in the middle of the frames. When the boy stepped out into the spotlight, Kakashi blinked his eyes wide in surprise.

With no thanks to Kurenai, the boy had emerged with a seemingly perfect outfit that complimented his physical and mental qualities splendidly. He looked brand-spanking new, dressed in a pair of blue trousers tied down at the cuffs by gauze, with blue sandals, a white shirt with a zipped-open blue vest, and his scarf wrapped neatly around his neck. The gloves he had chosen were hanging from the loop strap of his pants, and his ski mask goggles were worn comfortably on his forehead. He looked at himself to make sure everything was there, including the sword on his back, before glancing up at Kakashi and grinning. The man looked him over, to make sure that the boy he was looking at was Naruto. After rubbing his only visible eye, he smiled and nodded at the yellow haired child, knowing for sure that it was him.

"Hey…nice combination," the silver haired Jonin exclaimed. "I guess you don't need help picking out your clothes, after all…" Naruto chuckled and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, a shade of red streaking across his cheeks. When it died down, he glanced over at Kurenai, to see the Chunin emerge from the clothe-hangers with a pair of purple shorts and a red jacket in hand.

"Yes…here you go, Naruto…this……should………work…" The woman's words slowed when her eyes fell upon the already dressed boy, clad in perfectly fitted glory. The yellow haired boy looked back at the raven haired woman in confusion for a few moments, before a small smile spread across his lips and he waved to the woman. Blinking back, Kurenai looked him over not just once, not just twice, but three times over. In all her years of passing out fashion suggestions to her friends and several of her past students, the one she had in mind just exploded compared to the image standing before her. A faint "wow" was all that emerged from her rosy red lips.

Kakashi laughed, turning the page of his novel, while still gazing at the look on Kurenai's face with amusement. "Well Kurenai, it seems that your help wasn't necessary at all in this case!" the silver haired Jonin chuckled out. "Although, the pieces you've picked out aren't…_half_-bad either…"

Noticing the two pieces of clothing she held in her hands, the raven haired woman quickly hid them behind her back and blushed, grinning at the boy in delight and embarrassment, all an attempt to mask her near blunder. "Oh well…it was all in good fun, right?!" she exclaimed in a very uncharacteristic way, a laugh soon following her outburst like statement. Grinning, she opened her eyes and glanced down at Naruto, while at the same time, dropping the clothes she held in the pile behind her. "Well now…I must say, that is one fine outfit you've chosen there, Naruto! Very original!"

Naruto smiled back. In a completely persona complimentary manner, he grabbed the end of the scarf hanging over his chest and tossed it over his left shoulder, placing his hands on his hips shortly afterwards. Kurenai chuckled at the sight and stood up, right hand on her hip as she gave him a very considerate smile.

"So, are you hungry?" she asked. "Do you want something to eat?"

The boy thought for a moment, before a loud grumble from his gut suddenly broke the silence at exactly the right moment. Naruto crossed his hands over his stomach and grinned up at the raven haired ninja, who raised an eyebrow at the young man and shook her head. She took him by the shoulder and began hurrying him out of the room at a slow pace.

"Come on then, kid," she exclaimed, amusement clearly etched in her voice. "If you're that hungry, then you might as well eat. After lunch, we can take you to the Hokage, who'll gladly show you to your new home!" She led Naruto out of the room, closely followed by Kakashi, who was still nose deep in his novel. Sensing that the silver haired Jonin wasn't contributing much to their little rallying of the child, she stopped and glared over at the man, who stopped at the same time they did. "Kakashi, either put that book away, or _I_ rip it in half! Your choice…"

The Jonin, heeding the warning of his teammate, sighed and slipped it into his back pouch. When it was secured, he brought both hands forward and showed them to the Chunin, as if he was going through an items check. "There we go…no book!" he exclaimed in a clearly forced manner. Kurenai rolled her eyes and continued ferrying Naruto along, who was too busy staring at Kakashi in an odd way. Apparently, he had found the ninja's constant reading and being bossed around a very intriguing sight.

Disappointed, Kakashi followed after, hands in his pockets.

* * *

_**An hour…**_

…and fifteen bowls of ramen later, Naruto and his Jonin company were now standing in the Hokage's office before the Third's Desk, eyes locked with the old man to show their respect of attention. Of course, the only one with the look of satisfaction and curiosity on his face was Naruto, whereas Kakashi and Kurenai had rather glum looks on their faces. In spite of the enjoyment of the time they had spent with the yellow haired kid, they couldn't help but fell lighter…with good reason. Not only were they going to have to part with Naruto, there were good and bad reasons for it: the kid had completely cleaned them up; their wallets pried open at _Ichiraku's Ramen Stand_ and emptied of all their contents. Kakashi was now regretting ever introducing Naruto to his favorite bar. Kurenai had to split the bill, which was still a considerably large amount. Not even she spent over three hours work in one whole hour.

Sarutobi was smiling brightly as he was carefully scanning through the lists of vacated families who would be happy to adopt. However, thanks to the reports given by Kurenai and Kakashi, and after witnessing first hand the capabilities of the child, finding the right family wasn't going to be easy. He needed to find parents who Naruto could warm up too, and had plenty of space and room in their home for an extra family member. Of course, due to the fact that Naruto still held a strong connection to his family members thanks to his possessions, he decided to make it so that Naruto wasn't officially bonded parentally to the family he was going to be put with. After all, he felt that this village needed more clans to increase its ever growing culture.

The Uzumaki Clan!

It had a nice ring to it. That's why in this case he preferred the term 'look-after' rather then 'adoption'.

When he looked up, the Third set down the scroll he was holding and propped his elbows up on his desk, lacing his fingers together and giving his subject a more considerate stare. All the while, the boy couldn't help but notice the certain forehead wide dent in the surface of the desk in front of the Hokage. Though it seemed out of place, Naruto wondered what could have made such a dent. However, he wasn't given much time to think about it.

"So Naruto…I think I've finally found the perfect family for you to move into. Though these people do have their ups and downs, I'm sure you'll find that they have quite the welcoming household," the Third Hokage exclaimed, a bright smile etched upon his face. "I think you'll fit right in!"

At this statement, the yellow haired boy smiled brightly and nodded, earning a rather distressed look from Kakashi, and an amused one from Kurenai.

"_Well…whoever it is…Naruto's their problem now…"_ the raven haired illusion master exclaimed, closing her eyes and giggling silently to herself. _"A cute, energetic, eating machine…I've never met a child in my life that can compare to him…"_ She further responded to these thoughts by placing her hands on her hips and letting out a deep sigh.

"_Lord help the wallets of those who are going to be looking after him,"_ Kakashi phrased in his head, smiling brightly. _"Heh…I can sure as hell see him entering the ninja academy some day. He'll make a great shinobi when he's older…and a hard kid to put up with at present."_ The Jonin put particular emphasis on this end note, causing him to chuckle.

The Hokage, ignoring his two ninja's personal thoughts and visual evidence to this, shook his head and picked up the scroll he was reading. Rolling it up, he tied it up with the threads attached, and handed it to the Kai-lo Shinobi standing beside him. The man in robes took it gently, as if it were a delicate art piece needed to be transferred to a museum. The old ninja glanced up at the man as he handed it to him. "Please, take this right away to the Haruno family! They'll be expecting Naruto over shortly." The man bowed low to the leader of the village, before disappearing in a puff of white smoke. Smiling, the Hokage looked back over at the three visitors and laced his fingers together, propping his elbows up onto his desk once more. In so doing, he gave Kakashi and Kurenai a thoughtful stare. In the meantime, Naruto had finally figured out what that groove in the desk was…and was now scurrying around the room looking for a solution to the problem.

"How do you think Makoto and Kinoko Haruno will fair with the boy?" Sarutobi asked, as if the two people he had mentioned were assigned with taking on a highly dangerous, S-ranked mission. "Sure they are one of the most functional families in Konoha, and they know how to take care of a child, I still have my doubts about them being able to handle the young boy…"

Kakashi shrugged, hands in his pockets. "Well…if I know Makoto…" The Jonin shifted back a bit as Naruto shrugged passed to pick up the purple pillow lying at the silver haired ninja's feet, "He alone can deal with the boy. He's as good a father as he is a ninja, and that's not easy for me to say…"

"Yes…I know. You're not much…or _really_, the fatherly type, Kakashi, which is why I didn't consider you as an appropriate candidate for such a trying task in the first place…" Sarutobi stated, a-matter-of-factly. This earned a wide grin from Kurenai and a rather dramatic droop from the silver haired Jonin. The Third Hokage glanced over at the raven haired Chunin, eyebrow raised and face overshadowed by seriousness. "As for you Kurenai…I didn't want to discard the responsibility onto you, since you presently don't have the free time or patience to deal with a child, or the necessary homestead for another family member. So don't go smiling about and thinking you are just as better at being the adoptive mother of Naruto then Kakashi is being the father…" Kurenai too drooped into submission.

By this time, Naruto was done with his foraging, and arrived at Sarutobi's side with the pillow in hand. The old man glanced down at the child with a raised eyebrow, only to see him place the pillow over the groove on his desk. The yellow haired boy smiled back at him before returning to Kakashi and Kurenai, both of them with their heads lowered and a sign of blue lines emitting from their heads. Ignoring the pillow placed in front of him, and only seeing it as an innocent gesture of appreciation, Sarutobi looked up at the two ninja standing in front of him and nodded to them.

"You can take him down to Makoto's house now, Kakashi," Sondaime stated, catching the two downed shinobis' attentions. "We'll discuss more about this later. But for now, I think young Naruto would like to become acquainted with his new home and family." With a bow from both ninja, Kurenai and Kakashi then led a curious Naruto out of the room. It was amazing how energetic the child seemed in form, but his unwillingness to speak made him seem less of a threat. That was a major advantage in combat.

The three of them disappeared out the door, where they passed by one of the Hokage's secretary Chunin bringing the Hokage more paperwork. The volunteer young adult watched the troop leave, before eventually proceeding over to the old man's desk. Sarutobi was adjusting his funny hat at the time, before eventually looking up just in time to see half-a-meter high of papers and scrolls slam down on the desk in front of him. It was so heavy, the sudden drop of the mound caused the desk to bounce an inch off of the ground and several of the office materials already on it to roll off, and onto the floor. The Chunin groaned and leaned on the desk, exhausted. He wiped some sweat on his brow for the added effect.

"More…paper-work…Hokage-sama…" the young man panted. Sarutobi took one look at the mountain of paper, before letting out a groan of mental agony and slamming his head down on his desk. When his head could have made contact with the hard-wood surface, it instead struck the soft surface of the pillow Naruto had placed in front of him. His groan muffled, the old man let out a satisfied sigh before looking up, a disgruntled expression in play. In spite of it, he was relieved on the inside.

"I owe that kid thanks…"

* * *

_**Half an hour later…**_

_**South Residential District…**_

"Makoto! I know you're in there! Don't make this harder then it already is!" the silver haired Jonin yelled.

Kakashi was practically pounding on the door of the Haruno household by now. After the first three minutes the hosts were making them wait, the Jonin was already becoming impatient. Makoto was notorious for making his friends wait at the door for an extra five minutes before he bothers answering it, and by then, the callers would have already left, while relatives were considering the notion of going. This was mainly due to the fact that he was fed up of having Kakashi making him and _his_ friends wait, so as payback, was making him wait to see how he would handle the frustration. You could immediately tell they were best of mates back at the academy.

Kurenai was standing behind her silver haired teammate, watching him peer in through the window and repeatedly hammer on the door. She wore an odd look on her face as the young male stumbled around impatiently, folding his arms and tapping his foot in a highly animated way. Naruto just stood beside the raven haired woman, watching Kakashi curiously and taking in the man's antics. He was already fascinated in the two shinobi, and watching them how they acted was providing him with a lot of entertainment. Kakashi, as serious as he was, still had a side to him that was brought out during embarrassing, and sometimes critical situations.

This situation, however, was an amalgamation of both…

Knocking on the door again, Kakashi slipped his hands into his pockets and glared at the door, foot tapping impatiently. Kurenai sighed and gave the silver haired ninja a distressed look, all of it directed towards her teammate's actions.

"Honestly, Kakashi…knock any harder and you'll break down the door…"

"That's what I'm thinking of doing right now," the ninja mumbled, raising his fist to pound on the wooden obstruction again. However, before his fist could make contact with the surface again, the door opened, Kakashi's knuckles stopping abruptly before a smirking, familiar face. Kakashi drew back his fist slightly, eyes shrunken in that surprised, animated look. Kurenai and Naruto looked up in surprise, blinking as they gazed upon the face of none other then Makoto Haruno.

"Hello there!" the man exclaimed, looking from left to right at his visitors. Immediately identifying the guests standing on his doorsteps, the white-haired male grinned brightly. "Ahh…Kakashi, Kurenai…how are you today?" Kurenai grinned and waved lightly, whereas Kakashi sighed and lowered his fist, giving Makoto his negative-basic stare.

"Fine…just fine…" Kurenai answered.

Naruto was quite taken in by the man that had answered the door. He was unlike any he had ever seen or sensed. He seemed friendly that was for sure, and the yellow haired boy sensed no bad signals coming off of him at all. The man was also well-groomed, and sporting the recognizable outfit of a Jonin. A dark long-sleeved shirt with white cuffs, accompanied by a dark green vest with a thin collar reaching up to just below the ears, and a slightly longer bottom rim that reached down and hung just above the knees, with two extra scroll pouches, and pockets seen in the lower sides. Also, the white haired man wore jeans with a tear in the right knee, light shin-guards, black sandals, and two belts crisscrossing over the single belt that held up his pants. In the scabbards fitted on either hanging side of each belt, he had four kunai pouches carrying what looked to be four bayonet knives, with two more up in the shoulders holsters under his vest. Furthermore, the man also wore a blue bandana, covering his light hair that came over a well-defined, friendly face with blue eyes and a nice smile. Overall, he looked just as descent as Kakashi.

Makoto looked from Kakashi to Kurenai, and then down at the yellow haired boy standing beside the raven haired woman. When his eyes fell upon him, he was remotely surprised at seeing such a well-presented young lad, and again a very friendly looking one too. He was expecting someone…totally different! However, now that he could see the boy in person, he could now confirm his nervous-racked thoughts. Smiling, he stepped forward, hands in his pockets and eyes locked with the curious ones of the boy.

"And you must be Naruto…my…I never even thought…" Makoto knelt down in front of the boy, seeing him step back slightly in response. "My name is Makoto Haruno…it's a real pleasure to finally meet you!" the ninja exclaimed, holding out his right hand. The boy looked down at the man's hand in response, seeing the greeting held out full length. It was after identifying this friendly gesture, Naruto smiled back and shook the man's hand. His grip was vice, just to make the impression suitable. Makoto nodded with a grin. "Hokage-sama asked me to take care of you. Kinoko and I were considering adopting a brother or close companion for our daughter, so I guess you were hand-picked by Sarutobi himself for our choice. I'll be looking forward to getting to know you more in the future, Naruto!"

Naruto smiled and nodded in return, before feeling Makoto release his hold and rise to his full height once more, hands in his pockets. The white haired Jonin was still smiling down at him, giving the boy the same respect, courtesy and smile any father would give his son. Kurenai and Kakashi just held back, watching the introductions unfold.

"My daughter and Kinoko are really anxious to meet you, Naruto! I'm sure you'll come to like them very much!" Makoto exclaimed, glancing behind him towards his still open door to the Haruno household. When he did, he called into the building, altering his family of the child's arrival. "Kinoko! Come on out! There's someone I want you to meet!" The first few seconds was held in silence by the group, before they were eventually joined by two more figures, a woman and a girl, obviously the couple's daughter. They stepped outside, meeting their distinguished visitors face to face.

"Why…good afternoon, Kakashi-sensei…Kurenai!" the woman exclaimed, a bright smile on her face. "My…and who is this young man? Is he our new family member?"

"Guest…Kinoko. The Hokage specifically requested that on paper…" Makoto reminded. Kinoko giggled and walked forward, leaning over a bit so that she could look over the boy a little more. Her daughter was still hiding behind her.

"Still…I see no problem in him calling me _mom_…" the woman exclaimed, smiling. Naruto smiled back up at her, finding her face and spiritual energy very pleasant on first sight. She also looked like a nice person too. Short, pink hair with light brown eyes, matched with flawless skin and a well earned figure. She also wore a red martial-arts top with a black shirt underneath, a red belt fastening the top down, a maroon colored robe-dress, and brown sandals. She was, to put it in simple terms, an image of kindness. Her smile continued to warm the air with its aura. "Naruto, is it? 'Giggle'…it's really nice to meet you. And such a handsome young man you are, too…"

The boy responded to the compliment with a grin, a blush, and a rub of the back of his head with his left hand. He looked away shyly, flattered by Kinoko's words. Makoto's wife smiled lovingly again, before straightening herself and glancing behind her at the little figure hiding behind her dress. Though thoroughly amused at the sight, Kinoko couldn't help but find her daughter's actions understandable.

"Come on, honey…it's alright…" Naruto attempted to catch a glimpse of the girl hiding behind the older woman, but was unable too due to the fact the girl was using Kinoko's dress as a shield against his eyes. Eventually, the mother was able to pull her daughter out from behind her, and when she did, the boy's heart seemed to stop and all sound around him simply disappeared.

Naruto was no more and no less then shocked at the being now standing plain in his sights. It was like an angel had fallen from heaven, and threatened to take away his very heart and his breath from his body in a single swipe, if that was this divine creature's wish. Pure and beautiful in all forms spoken and unspoken; Naruto's eyes fell upon silky, pink hair tied up by a red boy, matched with emerald eyes that sparkled in the light of the sun. Skin glowing with an aura of life, illuminating flawless textures, and an innocent face lit up by an equally radiating light. Now, Naruto had no idea what had hit him! But as far as he was concerned, it was the most overpowering feeling he had ever experienced. A similar look of shock crossed over the girl's face, as both of their eyes met with the figure standing several feet away from each other.

Kakashi and Kurenai noted the reaction the two children had on first sight of each other. Upon doing so, the two ninja smiled brightly and looked up at each other, sharing this silent exchange of visual perceptions. They knew love had struck the two children, if that was the appropriate word to use. If it wasn't love then they didn't know what they saw. Looking back, they saw that both Naruto and the girl's eyes haven't torn away or blinked for even a moment.

Silence seemed to dawn between the two children, under the watch of the eyes of the adults. Makoto and Kinoko were pleased that the two have taken immediate interest in each other, and it was certain that there was a much expected, bright future ahead of them now. After a minute or so, and Naruto still hadn't made a move yet whatsoever, Kinoko nudged at her daughter's shoulder and nodded towards the blonde haired boy.

"Go on sweetie…introduce yourself!" the mother exclaimed, voice filled with amusement. The pink haired girl gulped and shied away, hiding behind her mother's dress again, her eyes still locked with the boy and a bright blush streaking across her cheeks. Naruto also had a light blush on his cheeks, his eyes wavering in a newfound light no one had ever seen on him before. After several more seconds, and Kinoko couldn't bring her daughter about with words of reassurance, she decided to physically pull her out. That she did, taking her by her shoulders and moving her into full view once again. "Meet our new household guest, dear…"

The blonde haired boy gulped, raising his right hand and waving it once. "H-Hi…"

The pink haired girl smiled shyly back, red blazing hotly on her own cheeks and a wave as timid as the boy's. "H-Hi…I'm…" she paused for a moment, trying to recall the words to use in this situation, as well as bring up her name. It took her longer than expected, but eventually, she spoke. "My name is…S-Sakura Haruno…"

Naruto was almost staggered by the girl's name. It was beautiful…just like her. He smiled brightly and pointed a finger at his chest, his confidence slowly returning. "I-I'm Naruto Uzumaki…"

Sakura giggled and, wanting to take a closer look at the boy, walked forward cautiously. While she did so, the adults chuckled and looked up at each other, Kakashi slipping his hands into his vest pockets and clearly grinning up at Makoto.

"She seems quite taken to Naruto…" the silver haired Jonin exclaimed.

"You said it…" Makoto replied, rubbing the back of his head dazedly. "I think they'll live well together…" Around this time, Sakura had already eased up close enough to Naruto to stare him straight in the eyes. Blinking, the girl slowly began to circle him, looking him up and down curiously, whereas Naruto just stood where he was and nervously followed her with his own eyes. Both of them did detailed inspections of the other, like cats upon first meeting with something they couldn't quite grasp.

"We have the perfect living conditions…and I think we can adjust to one more member to the household," Kinoko exclaimed. "We'll give Naruto his own room…he can do whatever he pleases in there. Does he have any allergies?"

"None," Kurenai exclaimed. "The nurse already ran a diagnosis…"

"Good…what about…" Kinoko was about to ask, before Kakashi interrupted her.

"The Hokage listed it all on the message he sent you. Don't worry about anything…Naruto will be fine…" the Jonin stated, nodding affirmatively to the Haruno parents. _"They're in for a big surprise comes dinner…"_ Makoto nodded, whereas Kinoko just smiled. Sakura looked closer at the boy's face, leaning up slightly to take a closer look at his cheeks. From where she stood, she was clearly able to note the lines crossing across the boy's cheeks. They looked just like whiskers to her, but she couldn't be sure. Out of curiosity, she reached out to touch them, and met no resistance from the boy.

After running her fingers gingerly over each line, she withdrew her hand slowly and smiled up at Naruto, her face still showing pink and her emerald eyes sparkling with delight. "Are…are they whiskers?" she asked in a soft voice, laced with childish nervousness and embarrassment. Naruto smiled back and nodded, earning a tilt of a head from the girl, who continued to inspect the lines, as well as his dashing blue eyes. "You're like a cat, you know! 'Giggles'…I like them! They're cute!" Naruto blushed at this and rubbed the back of his head.

Grabbing his hand, Sakura then suddenly dragged him up the steps and into the Haruno household, a wide smile brimming her face. "Come on, Naruto! I want to show you something!" The boy nervously followed without restraint, and soon disappeared along with the girl back into the house. Makoto, Kakashi and the others watched the two children disappear, and turned back to each other. Kinoko bade goodbye to her friends, before going off to find out where the two have gotten too.

Kakashi drew one of his hands out and waved lightly, smiling brightly. "Well…I think you've got things settled here now. I guess we should take off now!"

"Are you sure?" Makoto asked. "You don't want to stay a little while and have a cup of coffee or tea…?"

"No thanks, Makoto," Kurenai said, smiling as she said this, "Maybe next time! Right now we've got a mission debriefing with the Hokage. He'll want those reports of the village incident filed to him as quickly as possible…"

Makoto grinned and chuckled. "Okay then…well…stop by whenever you want to say 'hi!'"

"Sure thing!" Kurenai replied, stepping down from the porch and preparing to take her leave.

"Say good-bye to Naruto for us! We'll be sure to see him around…" Makoto agreed to this favor, and after saying their good-byes, the two ninja headed off in two simultaneous puffs of smoke. Satisfied with everything that had gone down, Makoto took in one last breath of fresh air before disappearing into the Haruno household.

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	5. Fitting In

**Naruto**

_**Heart and Soul**_

_Fitting In_

"Ugh…I could use a break…" groaned Makoto as he walked down the hall to the living room, rubbing the back of his head and looking like he was about to fall asleep. Stretching out, earning several relieving cracks from his back and bones, he finally came to the decision to go up stairs and catch some zs. As much of an elite Jonin he was Makoto was as lazy as any ninja in the village, save for Shikamaru's father; now he was lazy! However, no one slept as soundly as the white haired Haruno.

Groaning, the man made his way upstairs up to his room, leaving his wife to cook in the kitchen. While walking down one of the halls with the designated bedrooms and bathroom, he passed by Sakura's room, and at the same, managed to catch the sight of the two children sitting together on the floor. Stopping for a brief moment, the man peered into the midst of his daughter's personal space, to see the two children gazing upon pictures Sakura had painted not too long ago. On top of that, she was also showing off a bunch of photos she had her family had taken to commemorate past holidays and gatherings. Needless to say, she was both an exceptional drawer and adventurer in Naruto's eyes, who shared a laugh with Sakura every time she told a joke.

Makoto chuckled at the sight, before making his way down the corridor toward his room. _"Those two are…inseparable…"_

Sakura's laughter filled the air, as she pointed at another one of her paintings, showing Naruto every detail written on the white sheet of scroll and seeing how much the boy was interested in it. "You see, and that's my dad fighting Kakashi! I watched those two fight once…but…it was only practice! They are really good!" She exclaimed, pulling up a photo to go along with it. With Naruto sitting cross-legged, he was able to see just about the same dimensions as Sakura, only he wasn't staring at himself. He gazed upon the photo he was holding up, and found to his curiosity and surprise that it was a photo of both Kakashi and Makoto in Post-Op, their arms and legs in casts. They were grinning stupidly at the one who had taken the photo of them lying in their beds, with Sakura and Kinoko standing by their injured family member. Amusingly enough, Kakashi had his infamous _Icha Icha Paradise _novel opened up beside him, which the kunoichi taking care of him was looking at with slight displeasure. "This is where they went after the fight! Silly dad…they fought so hard they ended up going to the hospital!"

Naruto nodded at this, grinning as well, never losing contact or interest in the girl or her subjects for a second. He was really enjoying himself, and really taking a liking to this family already. For a moment, Sakura smiled at him, but then noticed that he hadn't said much or anything for that matter since he got here. Curiosity overwhelming her, the young pink haired girl leaned forward and tilted her head at him, smiling brightly.

"Why aren't you talking?" she asked innocently, earning a raised eyebrow from the boy. Sakura grinned at him. "You can talk you know. You won't get in trouble for it…"

The spiky haired blonde just smiled at her in response, shying away his face a bit and casting his attention back to the paintings. He gingerly touched one of them, which was one of a cherry blossom tree with her and her parents under it. He figured it must have been another memory she wanted to preserve on paper, and took a few moments to admire it. Sakura noticed what he was looking at, and took the painting and held it up to him. As Naruto took it into his hands, the pink haired girl started explaining the meaning behind the drawing.

"I drew this after one of our walks," she exclaimed, pointing out the people under the tree. "Me, mum and dad went for a walk through Konoha's park a couple of weeks ago, and stopped under this cherry blossom tree. My mom said it was the family's tree, where she and daddy met, and fell in love! It's a very special place to our family…" Standing up, the girl grabbed Naruto gently by the hand and pulled him up with her. Dropping the painting in her haste, he was led towards the bedroom's window, where the girl pointed out over the city towards an area of trees and boulevards in the distance. She moved her finger over the area towards an even larger area of trees, which consisted of a very exotic variety. There didn't seem to be much going on, but the area was lined by a bamboo fence, and had carnival flag lines moving towards the center from all four corners. It was easily recognizable out of the other areas Naruto could see. "There…that clearing in the middle of that park…that's where my parents met…under the pink tree…"

Plain as a ray of sunlight illuminating a sacred area, the spiky haired child could clearly make out the blossom tree Sakura was referring too. He smiled at it and glanced around at the girl, seeing her smiling brightly back at him. With a light streak of pink coming across her cheeks, she reached out with her hand and placed it on top of his. Naruto looked away slightly in embarrassment, and rubbed the back of his head nervously with his free hand.

"Even though you don't talk," Sakura began, still smiling brightly, "you're still very nice, Naruto…"

The yellow haired boy glanced up at the girl, his expression showing his flattery towards her compliment. "R-Really?" he whispered. Sakura nodded her head enthusiastically, that childish innocence never escaping her complexion.

"It makes you seem…I don't really know how to say it…(giggles)…" she stepped over and placed her head against his shoulder, hands on his arm. Naruto leaned to the side in slight surprise, looking down at her as the girl nuzzled the warmth of his arm. "Very…nice …very… warm…"

Naruto scratched his cheek with his finger, blushing a brilliant shade of red while gazing down at the window seal ledge in front of him.

The two stood by the window for a minute or so, enjoying the silence and the aura each of them shared with each other. As kids, they had no idea how to explain the sensations they were experiencing, due to their limited knowledge of it. However, the best way to describe such feelings would be through one word. Love…

Love at first sight. That was the best way to describe what they were feeling at the moment. This just proved that there was such a philosophical theory in existence, and that even at a young age this overwhelming feeling and emotion could emerge.

Once their moment ended, Sakura lifted her head from his shoulder and looked up at him with sparkling eyes. "Wait here, Naruto! I want to show you something else!" the girl exclaimed, before turning on her heel and trotting out of her room. "Don't go anywhere!" Sakura called, disappearing down the hallway.

Naruto did what he was told and remained in his present position, gazing out over the Hidden Village of Konoha, basking in the light of the sun that shone through the window. He found the warmth of it pleasant, along with the accompanying breeze that carried a swirl of oak leaves and blossom petals through the air. The wafting wind carried it right past his window, the boy leaning out to catch the breeze, and follow the trail of foliage as it carried it into the distance. It was then his eyes suddenly fell upon a monument he had seldom seen.

Blinking, the boy leaned out a bit more to get a better look, eyesight glued onto the mountain that was made the landmark of the entire village. It shocked the boy since he wasn't graced with the pleasure of seeing it yet, since his journey to this house caused his back to be turned on the mountainside. Well, now he was presented with an excellent view of the four faces, as well as one startlingly familiar face.

Narrowing his eyes, Naruto's memories subconsciously began flowing back into his mind like a stream of running water. Recently forgotten images of a past emerged in his head, causing flashes of two shadowed faces to appear in his very line of sight. The boy shook his head, shutting his eyes tightly to test whether he was being tricked or not. When the painful slideshow of images finally vanished, he looked back, his eyes locked onto the forth face of the massive monumental structure. Upon that final, closer inspection, one last image sprung into his head. This one was of the same two faces, only their eyes weren't overshadowed by a curtain of deceit, and he could finally recognize the stone face carved into the mountain.

A man who had visited him and his mother when he was just two years old at best…

A man who had been the distant but loving role model in his life whom had passed his training down to him…

A man whom he'd almost forgotten completely…

"Father…?" Naruto whispered.

Acting upon urges common for a boy his age, Naruto swiftly leapt up onto the window sill ledge, crouching low before springing out of the room entirely. At that very moment, Sakura reappeared in the room, carrying with her, her prized teddy-bear with a red bow around its neck, similar to the one her friend Ino had given her. The teddy-bear, which was about her size, was snuggled up against her in her arms, her head peaking around with a bright smile as a showoff for her new friend. She was about to sound Naruto's name to introduce him to her friend, but got the shock of her life when she saw the boy leap out of her window.

Sakura cried out in shock, "NARUTO!" She dropped her teddy-bear and rushed over to the window, leaning over the ledge and looking down towards the garden, certain he had landed and killed himself. However, when her eyes became plastered on the garden shrine below, she found nothing, no body at all. This caused her to look upwards, as a chance to see if he was still falling. What she got shocked her even more then when she saw the boy jump out the window.

The pink haired girl saw that her new bedmate was soaring through the air in a long jump of unbelievable height and energy. It was almost like he was flying! But as he slowly began to descend upon the room of the building across from the Haruno's main household, Sakura knew that he wasn't flying. Naruto landed upon the roof, crouched and glaring ahead of him, eyes plastered on the Hokage faces. Without a second to spare, he sprinted forward, leaping onto the next roof and the next, matching speed, agility and feats matching that of a fully fledged Chunin. Sakura was stunned and awed.

"Sakura! Sweetie! What happened!?" Makoto said loudly, appearing in the doorway of Sakura's room the moment he heard her scream. Looking around wildly, the Jonin attempted to assess the problem, only to see that her daughter was at her bedroom window, looking outside, with no Naruto in sight. Immediately seeing the problem stemmed from there, he rushed forward and stopped behind her, also looking out across the rooftops. "What's going on? What happened to Naruto?!"

Responding instantly, Sakura pointed out, following a slowly shrinking yellow blur into the distance. "Naruto took off, daddy! He's jumping from building to building, like you do! He's heading that way!"

Looking in the same direction his daughter was pointing, Makoto's sharp eyes were easily able to catch what she was looking at also, and was thrown into a state of utter surprise and disbelief. He spotted Naruto, and was able to recognize him from this distance, but just could not process the fact that the boy was running off with strengths in the category of a shinobi.

Quickly surfacing from his shock, he nodded and also leapt onto the windowsill, glancing down at his daughter with a frown. "Don't worry honey! I'll bring him back!" Without another word, he leapt out onto the same roof Naruto also jumped onto, which was an astounding 50 meters away. The chase was on, and Makoto was soon on Naruto's tail.

Distancing himself from the Haruno household with every block he covered, Naruto sprinted and leapt over the Konoha residential and entertainment districts like there was no tomorrow. His pace was that of a sprint, but the boy looked as though he wasn't putting any effort into his run whatsoever. He hop scotched over balconies, frog-leapt over chimneys, and jumped in a zigzag pattern from buildings running a length opposite the other side.

When the boy eventually came across a low-riding entertainment district center, where he clearly ran out of buildings to make, he began making use of whatever surfaces were there that would take him to the next high-rise of buildings.

He leapt from the building he had ended at, and onto an umbrella set up to provide shade for a couple sitting at a nearby restaurant table. There were many of them set up, easily creating a lily-pond of circular objects to leap on. He jumped from umbrella to umbrella, easily using their center points and lightly build makes to cross the open area. People were looking up in surprise as they saw the mysterious boy seemingly float over them. Naruto even went as far to use one of the umbrellas as a makeshift sling-shot, which he bent to produce the energy he required in one of his landings, and then reversed that chain to throw him up onto an above power line.

He grabbed it using his hand, and threw himself up, flipping through the air and landing expertly onto it. Naruto slid down its length, coming across an opposing pole creating a support beam to help the wire get around. He easily leapt over it and onto the next one connecting him to the next building. He slid down it again, and leapt onto the building. He then continued on his journey across the village.

Makoto followed him as best as he could, amazed at the boy's gymnastic skills. He didn't dare following him across Celebration Square, which Naruto do with ease. The Jonin instead went around, finding it much easier to hop scotching over people's heads and surfing power lines. Within moments, he was back on Naruto's tale, pursuing him through various apartment blocks, leaping from balcony to balcony, and careful to avoid the clothes lines hanging across the chasm leading to the pedestrian paths below. Naruto was easily able to run down the zigzagging clothes lines, and even dodge people leaning out open windows to fluff their blankets and pillows. Those people got a big surprise when they saw Naruto seemingly fly by.

Makoto however wasn't as lucky as Naruto, when he suddenly came face to pan with a woman holding out bread-crumbs for the pigeons that usually visited her. He flew right into it, creating a nice dent in its surface before falling from the rooftops, letting out a manly scream before hitting the dirty ground below, and forming a nice crater amidst a light crowd of passers.

While Makoto was digging himself out of his human shaped crater, Naruto was able to make it all the way to the building at the base of the Four Hokage Faces. As it turns out, he landed on the very balcony of the Hokage Tower, which didn't seem to disturb the Sandaime who was knee deep in paper-work, and too busy to notice anything happening outside. This gave Naruto to apt time to gaze up at the stone faces for a few seconds, before eventually crouching really low and making a majorly huge jump right towards the nearest face, which turned out to be the third's. Landing against the side of it on the chin, the boy crouched there for the moment, easily able to stick to the side thanks to his chakra control. Eventually, he began sprinting over the face before reaching the head of the forth face.

Landing a top of the head, Naruto then stood there, straight up, hands on his sides and eyes cast downwards towards the massive monument he could scarcely make out due to his position. However, at this proximity to the face, the boy could easily feel a strange connection between him and the stone face, as if that special bond he had shared with that person in the fast remained in this plastered image of him.

To affirm these feelings and this belief, Naruto felt a sudden breeze wash over him from the distance, which carried the same leaves and blossom petals, which brushed against his cheek and chin, and causing him to look up. Feeling this gentle touch against his skin, Naruto followed the whirling leaves and blossom flowers around him, the wind carrying them in a strangely spiritual nature. Eventually, the wind died and gently placed the leaves and blossoms atop of the monument's head in front of him.

Naruto gazed down at the small pile, eyes showing his curiosity, yet knowledge of what this spirit was telling him. Breathing in and sniffing, the boy knelt down on the ground, before eventually lying across the stone surface. Curling up, Naruto closed his eyes, and slowly descended into a peaceful sleep.

"Father…"

* * *

_**An hour later…**_

Already late in the afternoon with the sun setting, Makoto was still in search for the boy that had run off. Misplacing himself after that knockout run in with the dust-pan, the white-haired Jonin was now retracing is steps and continuing on the trail he had been following. It took him a lot longer then expected, but he eventually found out where the child had gotten too. Leaping up the cliff-side of the mountain with the Four Hokage Faces, the Jonin soon reached the top, where he saw a young, sleeping figure curled up on the head of the Forth Hokage. Smiling in relief, the man leapt onto the head and landed next to the boy, seeing him sound asleep, with his head on the stone cold surface and still dressed in the full outfit he arrived in, sword and all.

Kneeling beside the boy, Makoto placed a hand on his back and gently shook him awake.

"Naruto…Naruto…" the Jonin whispered. "Come on son…wake up. You can't sleep here…"

Slowly, the boy started to wake up, his eyes fluttering open to half-lidded, and his body shifting to adjust. "F-Father…?" the boy groaned slowly glancing up at the man he thought was his dad waking him up. Makoto was sort of touched by the address, but pushed that aside as gently as he helped the boy to his feet.

"Hey there, Naruto," the young man exclaimed, pulling him up by his arm so that they were both standing. As the boy rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes, he looked up at the man beside him as he continued to talk. "Why did you run off like that, son? You gave my daughter quite a scare when you jumped out of her window. Like my wife always says, 'use the door!' It's very uncivilized to just jump in or out of people's windows unannounced!" The man obviously had an uncanny sense of humor surrounding him, but Naruto didn't respond to it immediately.

Catching onto what the older shinobi was saying, Naruto looked up at the man with a rather grim look on his face. "I…I didn't know…my father came from this village…" the boy whispered.

Makoto blinked in surprise. "Huh…what was that?"

Naruto lowered his head, eyes cast towards the head of the Forth Hokage they were standing on. The nod in that direction drew Makoto towards the attention of the stone carving. While their eyes were set on that subject matter, Naruto continued in a far-off and sort of hurt voice.

"My father was a ninja…j-just like you," Naruto whispered. "W-When I was younger, I remember how he told me… so many stories of h-his adventures, and how he protected his…_our_ home village…f-from danger. After he died, my mom continued telling me how great a man he was…and I knew for certain…after everything he told me…that he _was_…" Naruto said slowly, reaching up and gently grabbing the scarf around his neck. His memories took him into a world of his own, which Makoto was beginning to familiarize himself with. "My dad died, sacrificing his life to save me and mom…_and_ the entire world from a demon…which he sealed inside of me…and insured it would stay. He loved us all too much, enough to make him give up his own life to preserve ours…"

"Wait a second," Makoto interrupted. "A…A demon…inside of you, Naruto?" the man asked, giving the boy an incredulous stare. The yellow haired Genin looked up at the Jonin and nodded, seeing the white-haired adult pull back in sort disbelief. "Y-You mean…you're a host?"

Seeing that the man was confused, Naruto stepped back a bit and lifted up his shirt. When he did, he revealed an athletic toned stomach, with a bit of muscle to be seen. Makoto stared down at the boy's exposed skin for a moment, having half-expected to have seen something. But after a few seconds of waiting, the Jonin was eventually presented with a series of tattoos that suddenly began fading into view, the boy pumping chakra through his system in order to reveal the signs. Black tattoos with a spirally center, and nine black flames surrounding the spiraling seal appeared, revealing to Makoto that the boy was definitely a host to a demon.

The man knelt in front of the boy, placing his hand on the boy's stomach and running it across, reading the markings that had appeared. He mumbled to himself as he made it out, recognizing the seal belonging to the Forth Hokage, which he became familiar with from what he heard from Sarutobi about legendary jutsus. However, there were more to come.

After that first seal appeared, a Japanese Fire Symbol suddenly appeared in the center of the boy's chest, with more flames to appear surrounding it, and then the outline of the Ying and Yang symbol to appear behind it. Makoto immediately expected this to be a flush seal, sort of like a fall back seal in case the first seal was breached. It was a complicated one made by none other then the Yondaime himself. Furthermore, as it turns out, more flame tattoos began appearing down the length of the boy's right and left arms, which ended at the palms where spiral symbols appeared, surrounded by flames extending into the fingers. These were obviously doings of Kushina Namikaze, who was an expert when it came to the flow of chakra through the body. This meant that the powers of whatever demon sealed could be transferred and harnessed at will, with very little and limited use of hand signs. Furthermore, Makoto noted that this further sealed the demon within the body, and when drawing strength from it, it denied the bodily mutation which is usually seen, but allows a glimpse of the demon's aura witnessed.

Makoto nodded his head, glancing up at the boy to see him looking down at him with a saddened face. "These markings…they're all used to keep the demon inside of you?" Naruto nodded in response, making Makoto raise an eyebrow. "Which one is it?"

"The Nine-Tailed Fox," Naruto said.

Makoto smiled, lowering Naruto's t-shirt and drawing the boy into a hug, which Naruto found rather surprising in this situation. The white haired Jonin grinned, chuckling under his breath as he drew away from the boy and looked him in the eyes. "Your father was a great man, Naruto. He sacrificed himself to save you, so that you could live on, and fulfill his dream, which was to see you grow up, grow strong, and live a happy life," Makoto stated, nodding his head towards the surprised looking boy. "And I'm going to honor his sacrifice by taking care of you. But let's keep this demon thing our little secret…" he exclaimed, poking him lightly in the nose.

Naruto, understanding what Makoto was getting across, smiled brightly and nodded. With tears forming in his eyes, the boy leapt at the man and hugged him tightly, earning another light laugh from the Jonin. Returning the hug, Makoto then picked the boy up and set him on his shoulder. Naruto gladly took the comfy seat, and grinned down at the man.

"Come on then, Naruto!" Makoto exclaimed, "Let's get home. Kinoko and Sakura must be worried about us."

"Hai!" Naruto exclaimed.

With that done, Makoto and Naruto together disappeared in a swirl of leaves, taking them back to the city below, back home, where Naruto's new life would begin…

* * *

And like Makoto promised, he kept the secret of Naruto's extra soul dweller a secret, but told Sakura and Kinoko about his discovery of who the boy's real father was. Although Sakura held little understanding of the Yondaime, she did know the importance the man held in the village, and was awed by this information. Kinoko was also shocked beyond belief, but resigned to keep this to herself, for if word of this were to get out about this, the entire village would be on top of them for this. She also swore Sakura to secrecy about it. Having the son of a past village defender under their roof, and the greatest one at that, did tend to be a little nerve-rattling when thousands of people knew about this.

Either way, this information was kept locked away.

The following months that was in store for the family past like it was a year. Every member of the family made it count, fulfilling their duties as the new guardians and close-hearted souls of their new household guest. Naruto proved himself to be a loving, kind and friendly face in their family, and brought much delight to them, especially Sakura. The pink haired daughter of the legendary _Snare Ninja_ of the village, also known as Makoto, had taken a very obvious liking of the boy, and was always close to him wherever they went, whether it was outdoors or not. Kinoko also kept a special eye on the boy, also enjoying his company on their outings and indoor activities. He helped with the washing and cleaning whenever possible, and with many of the chores Kinoko most often had to do herself.

As always, to no surprise, Naruto always put his new family's happiness before his own. He always did what he was told, and even did extra things for them even without their consent. He was full of surprises. Whenever Sakura was upset due to bullying, the boy would comfort her and cheer her up however possible, and even went as far as to go outdoors and teach those girls a lesson by pranking them in the most horrifyingly hilarious ways possible. His most notorious prank the girls found out, was setting off extra strong stink bombs, which shot out visible green gas that morphed into snake like entities in the air. In turn, it then stuck its sickening stench to its targets, which lasted for a weeks, and that's with the frequent bath day or two. Naruto was always good for a laugh and a legendary prank, which Sakura came to greatly appreciate.

However, Naruto always seemed to be the quietest member of the family. He barely talked, only smiling and always listening. But somehow, even without words, he always seemed to brighten up a scene with his presence. It was like some magic glow was radiating off of him, causing everything to react in the same way towards him in an equally luminous nature. That smile of his, it was capable of subduing any kind of person into immediate liking of him. It also caused many other people to underestimate him. Take the regular everyday bully for example. At one time, when Naruto and Sakura were spending time at the local park, and Kinoko went off to get some ice-cream for the two of them, some bigger then usual boy and a small gang nearby decided to pick on them. He taunted the pair, even insulting Sakura because of her forehead. That was the bully's biggest mistake. It ended up in his face getting caved in by Naruto, who defended Sakura with an undying defense both physical and mental. That sent the bully's gang running off with their tails between their legs. They were never heard from since.

Over the next few days following that incident, Sakura's bond with Naruto strengthened greatly. So much so, that it was common to see the pink haired girl following the boy wherever he went. She idolized him like a knight in shining armor, which he was in the sense of his presence and actions. He acted upon chivalry, coming to her defense and her need, and he shined her with an ever loving smile and gentle actions of affection.

An extra development also began to occur over the next couple of months, which came to a big surprise for Kinoko and Makoto when they found out…

* * *

After yet another radiating day, the entire family was ready for bed. However, it was the two youngest residents of the Haruno household that needed to go to bed, and not the parents. They could stay up for as long as they wanted. It was their _duty_ as parents anyway. So once they were certain it was time, they sent the two children up to their rooms. Kinoko had snuggly tucked both Naruto and Sakura away, and once she was sure they were asleep, she left them to join her husband down stairs. Apparently he had other…_plans_ for the two of them, which they did not want their kids awake to get a sneak preview.

Naruto had just managed to doze off after five minutes, and was knee deep in a peaceful dream, when he suddenly became aware of approaching footsteps heading towards his room. Now, though he was fast asleep, the boy had trained himself to become aware of a presence's approach, and was able to recognize the differences between a regular walk, and a stealthy walk. This person was using a stealthy approach, with no exception. The moment he heard his bedroom door creak open, his eyes shot open.

Slowly, but surely, the figure approached his bed. When she stopped beside the bed, she reached out with a delicate hand and gently placed them on the boy's arm, shaking him awake. Little did the intruder know was that Naruto was already awake, and the moment she shook him he was sitting up, turning to see who it was that had entered his midst. To his surprise, he saw Sakura standing beside him, wearing short-sleeved, two pink pajama pieces, and a frightened look on her face.

"S-Sakura?" he whispered.

"N-Naruto," she began in a shaky voice, one obviously holding a hint of fear. "I…I just had a scary dream. C-Can I…sleep with you?" Sakura asked, attentively gesturing towards the big empty space next to him.

Naruto was dumb-struck for a moment, surprised that the girl he admired would enter his bedroom at this time of night, and ask to sleep with him. The girl he had fallen in love with, asking to spend the night with him. It was too good a moment to pass up, and how could he. He would do anything in his power to help protect her, whether it be from a demon on the outside, or the inside. With a loving smile, he nodded.

"Sure…" he exclaimed, shifting aside to allow her access to his bed space.

Sakura beamed with sudden delight. "T-Thank you!" she exclaimed quietly, jumping into his bed and wrapping the blankets around her. Furthermore, overwhelmed by a great sense of gratitude and affection, the girl cuddled up to the boy and embraced him. With a smile on her face, she placed her head against his chest and closed her eyes, feeling an immediate sense of safety and security overcoming her. Naruto was slightly jolted by her sudden hug, but that shock passed soon after and he smiled, returning her embrace with one of his own. As protective as he was now as he was during the day, the boy held the girl too him tightly, not wanting to let go.

For several minutes, the two remained like that, seemingly sound asleep. Their smiles donned their faces, warmth enveloped their bodies and hearts, and senses of unexplainable emotions drowned them into a drowsiness that threatened to send them into a dream they knew they didn't want to wake up from. It was towards these feelings Sakura just had to announce.

"You're so warm, Naruto-kun," the girl said, her voice quiet and holding an innocence similar to that of Naruto's. "I…I want to stay like this forever…"

"M-Me too…Sakura-chan," the boy replied, comfortably nestling his cheek against her soft, pink hair. He felt the girl's leg rub up against his, and her arms tighten around him, so that they were brought closer together in both body and soul.

Sakura sighed. "N-Naruto-kun…"

"Yes…Sakura-chan…"

"Thank you…" she repeated.

Smiling brightly, Naruto nodded slightly, feeling his heart soar in spirit. Eventually, the two of them fell asleep like that, and would remain that way until morning.

Around the time the two children have been asleep for an hour, Makoto and Kinoko eventually decided to go to bed for some of their own midnight activities. When the couple passed by Naruto's bedroom, it was Kinoko's sharp eyes that spotted the two children in the bed, locked in a loving embrace. The woman's sudden stop caused Makoto to double-back, and when both their eyes were nestled in the room and coming to realization of what they were looking at, they both took up expressions of astonishment.

Seconds later, Kinoko grinned and glanced up at her husband, nudging him in the side. "Quick! Makoto! Get the camera!" she whispered. Nodding, the Jonin rushed towards their bedroom to grab the device ordered on request. When he returned with it, he found Kinoko standing in the room, her left arm folded over her stomach and head rested against her right hand as a prop. The woman was gazing at the sight with a glint in her eyes that showed hope and happiness, an image Makoto hadn't seen since they first admitted their love for each other. For this situation, it was slightly different.

Smiling, the man handed his wife the camera, his eyes also fixed on the two peacefully sleeping children. "Like I said, those two are inseparable…" Kinoko giggled, stepping forward and bringing up the camera. With the flash removed, she was safe to snap her picture.

"Can you believe it, Makoto?" Kinoko exclaimed, "Our little girl is in love…"

"Yeah…heh…it reminds me of us when we were kids…"

Kinoko smiled and snapped a couple of pictures of Naruto and Sakura, capturing the moment perfectly. The moment engraved in her mind, she turned around and approached her husband, stopping beside him and snuggling into him, camera in hand.

"Sakura Uzumaki… (giggles)…the name just rolls right out of your mouth…"

"Those two are something special," Makoto stated. "It's not just the bond they share, but how they act as a couple…"

"I have a feeling that they'll be just like us when they grow up," Kinoko said.

"Hey, don't get any ideas like that," the white-haired Jonin said, nudging her in a playful manner. "They're not old enough to think about stuff like that. Besides, you're the mother, you should be more concerned about keeping stuff like that from happening with our daughter, not supporting it!"

"I know that, you old goose! Now…" Kinoko exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him and bringing their bodies crushing together. The woman was now looking up at her husband with lust in her eyes, a sight which he welcomed with a sharp intake of breath at the look on her face, and the feeling of her thigh rubbing against his private area. "Why don't we end this night while my dirty thoughts are in over-drive…"

"That's all the information I need to send me to bed," Makoto replied, literally swooping his wife of her feet bridal style and carrying them out of the bedroom.

When the two adults entered their room, they missed the sight of both Naruto and Sakura's smiles widening, as an unspoken and almost telepathic reaction of realization crossed their minds. Happiness bathed them in their dreams, and the warmth between them never left…

And they had a feeling that it would never disappear…

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	6. Angel of Death

**Naruto**

_**Heart and Soul**_

_Angel of Death_

It would be a real bother to ask how Makoto and Kinoko managed around the Haruno residence now that they had two troublesome kids to take care of and feed. As promised, Kakashi and Kurenai came by to visit a couple of times to check on Naruto, and were really tempted to ask that question by the way the yellow haired runt and his new roommate were running around with so much energy to spare. But by the way the entire family was organized, and how well they lived and worked together, you could immediately tell that they were a well rehearsed shinobi team.

As stated, the four members of the main Haruno household worked hard and well, and basked in the rewards that followed. Everyone had a chore assigned to them, which made everything both efficient and fair. Secondly, the four of them were easily able to keep the roof over their heads without it toppling over due to stress or pressure. Makoto had a lot of chores assigned to him, which included ninja missions, meetings, most of the bills, expenditures and making sure the grass was cut. Kinoko shared her chores around the house with Naruto and Sakura, asking them to help her keep the garden maintained, as well as the interior of the house itself. This included cleaning, washing the dishes, clothes and making sure everything was kept in its rightful places.

For the next year or so to follow, things were pretty much the same as it was last year, save for the fact that both Naruto and Sakura had grown. As it turns out, the two children had a lot of their priorities and future prospects set out for them. Sakura wanted to become a shinobi just like her father, but wanted to extend her abilities more into becoming a medic ninja. She saw she was smart enough for that, and so did Naruto and her family. Furthermore, she set herself a goal to become the best medic ninja in the village. Naruto however, was a lot quieter about his future prospect, but made it clear to the family that he wanted to become a shinobi, the strongest in the land, just like his father before him. His past family promised him that life, and his new family expected that of him.

Seeing that Naruto was so intent on becoming a shinobi, as well as his own daughter, Makoto opted to train them both. Sakura was already in her training stages to becoming a ninja, but the adults were unsure of Naruto's experience. Therefore, some tests and basic training was required. Kinoko also volunteered to help train the two, being a fellow shinobi of mid-level Chunin; she felt that she could help out a lot. So, when both Naruto and Sakura were eight, for the following months, Makoto and Kinoko took turns in training the youngsters, following through the same exercises they were pushed through. Before and after schooling hours of course, Makoto or Kinoko would pull aside the two of them and make them work on their fighting skills, as well as molding them into shape.

It was noticeable that Sakura had to work hard in the exercises to the satisfaction of her parents, but Naruto seemed to be enjoying it more then crying in sore despair. This made Makoto wonder more about the child and his abilities. True he was the son of the Forth Hokage, and that he was the host to the Nine-Tailed Fox, there were however a lot of mysteries surrounding him. It was Makoto's underestimating of the child that gave him a real shock one Saturday morning…

* * *

Loud thuds of fists and feet impacting against a boulder could be heard echoing throughout the surrounding air. Accompanied by grunts of effort, and the huffs of sharp intakes and outtakes of breath, the noises eventually led any onlookers to its source, which turned out to be Makoto pumping iron. The white haired male was dressed in only a pair of pants with wrappings around his arms and legs, was bare feet of course, and had no top or headband. He was hard at work at the moment, physically training his body to keep himself in perfect shape and form. What he was doing was, of course, no surprise to any of his fellow ninja.

Following his routine training schedule, the Jonin was busy working attacks away at the massive boulder that sat in the middle of the Haruno Backyard garden. Well, to call the place a garden was an understatement. The Haruno estate is presently, one of the largest estates in the village. The residents of this household were blessed with a wide open reserve, with a small forest, which they maintained and used for their own training exercises. Aside from these large patches from topography's point of view of course, the small family did have a rather remarkable garden. Blossom trees were planted all over the place, accompanied by bamboo bushes and trees, roses, sunflowers, and other exotic plants a lot of people in this village haven't seen, including the beachside coconut tree. A cobblestone footpath weaved through the garden in the back, crossing the small river that flowed through here, and the fish pond, which was all built around a central shrine, which was lit up on special nights. It was truly magnificent.

Not only was the Haruno estate one of the largest areas in this local area of village, but the family also had one of the most well tended gardens to date. However, aside from the magnificent shrines, and the spa sitting beside a beautiful foliation of plants, and the steam-room set in another corner, there were some other strange things lying around. An example, being the boulder that Makoto was hammering away at.

This stone structure stood out like a sore thumb, and was becoming a sorry sight as well. The number of times this thing was used by Makoto was beginning to show through the massive dent in its side the young adult was constantly punching and kicking. His lethal combinations were so strong they were visibly chipping away pieces of the boulder. If that weren't enough, skid marks on the ground in front of it showed the pivot movements of feet that were initiated in order to unleash the attacks upon the beaten up stone.

Louder thuds were heard, this time much more rapid, as Makoto picked up the pace in his combinations. His fists and kicks were mere blurs as he moved around the stone, initiating dodges and blocks in the exercise, and countering them. More chips off the boulder flew out, as his solid and bruised limbs peppered away at its surface. For the next minute or so, he continued this, his combinations growing more fierce and complicated. Then, after unleashing a final blow, which was meant to be a lethal one aimed for a particular spot, he ended by straightening himself, and breathing in and out to relax his pounding heart. Wiping the sweat from his brow, the topless man stretched out his arms, and turned his back towards his punching bag.

"Ahh…that was good…a nice morning breather…" Makoto groaned, cracking his neck from left to right.

The Jonin was about to proceed indoors, when he unexpectedly saw Naruto standing outside, in front of the doorway, looking at him through curious, innocent eyes. It gave the head of the household quite a jump, since he didn't even hear the door slide open. But here he was, dressed in a white T-shirt, orange shorts, and his scarf around his neck with his swords sheathed behind him, without any sandals or headband, was the young, quiet child of the house.

Makoto blinked in surprise, and Naruto blinked back, both of them now standing in an awkward and still silence, where neither moved an inch for fear of disturbing the balance of nature. But one of them eventually moved, and that move was made by Makoto. The white haired Haruno grinned and waved at the boy.

"Hey there, Naruto," he exclaimed casually. "Up for some training, are we?"

Blinking a couple of times as a first response, Naruto then smiled and nodded his head enthusiastically. Earning a chuckle from his Jonin-be-home sensei, Makoto then gestured for the boy to follow him, which he did. Trotting forward to walk beside the head of the Haruno family, Naruto was slowly lead into the wooded area, where he had been through several exercises in the past. After five minutes of walking straight through the region, they eventually stopped at a large tree stump, the largest in the area, showing that whatever tree that had once been growing here must have been the oldest of the lot.

Stretching out, Makoto turned towards his yellow haired student and grinned at him. "Okay then, Naruto! Seeing as that you're up and looking for a workout, why don't I test you and see how strong you really are!" The boy just stared at the man silently, expression showing his puzzlement. The white haired Jonin chuckled and stretched out his back. "Don't worry; it's nothing harmful. It's just going to be a friendly spar. Heh. Over the past year, I've noticed that the training Kinoko and I have been giving you has been everything but an exercise for you, Naruto! Therefore, I've decided to initiate this little exam: a one on one match between you and me!"

Smiling brightly, Naruto nodded excitedly. With a smirk and a serious fighting face coming into play, the boy back-flipped and, once assuming the correct distance, dropped into a fighting stance. The readiness shown in his stance was all Makoto needed to settle his question. Grinning, the adult slammed his right fist into his left palm, and nodded firmly.

"Excellent! Okay then, son! Show me what you've got!" Standing there casually with his fists at his sides, the white haired Jonin waited for the boy's attack. He didn't have to wait long.

Bringing his left hand behind him, Naruto suddenly through it forward across then back in a two-sweep motion, a cluster of kunai knives suddenly flying through the air straight at Makoto at speeds he did not expect. The Jonin gasped and stepped sideways to his left, turning in a full 360 degree motion at the same time. He was able to avoid the first few knives that flew past him, but had to bend back a full 90 degrees, resulting in him supporting himself on his left hand to avoid the last six. He was barely able to get under it, much less avoid the whole bunch. His eyes shot off in the direction the kunai went flying, where he heard the rustling of leaves at the disappearance of the flying weapons.

Makoto looked back at the boy who had thrown those knives after a few seconds of composing himself, eyes wide and mouth agape. Standing in the same place where he started, he saw Naruto smirking at him, using a personality expression he had never seen before. The Jonin immediately knew that the boy meant business, and that got him grinning a moment later. He pushed himself up to a proper standing position, and fixed the straps on his right arm.

"I see…you've got _some_ skill…" Makoto exclaimed, lowering his arms. "But let's see how good you are at hand-to-hand combat!"

Crouching low, Naruto suddenly sprung forward, pouncing like a wolf onto its prey. Faster then a flying kunai, he charged at Makoto, and flung his left fist straight at the man's face. The Jonin stepped back in surprise, just in time to avoid the punch. He brought his left arm up, blocking the right roundhouse kick that came flying through the air straight at him. The force caused him to lean in the direction away from the impact, and the ringing of the blocked blow nearly made his arm go numb. Holding place there, Makoto then threw Naruto off of him, the boy back-flipping and skidding to a stop about fifteen feet away. Glancing at his arm, Makoto stared at it, only to see it suddenly develop goose bumps and shake as if his limb had a seizure, and that freaked him out. Now that was some serious numbness.

Before his opponent could take further action, Naruto leapt at him, and with a loud growl of anger, sent a punch straight across Makoto's face. This blow knocked the ninja flying back over the large tree stump, and into another large tree. The crash to follow created a nice dent of wood and splinters, a clear imprint from the impact carved nicely into the tree's base. Naruto touched down on the ground, and when he did, he flicked his left hand out to his side. At this action, five ninja stars suddenly appeared in between his fingers, a grin forming on the boy's face. Leaping to his left, the boy landed against the side of another nearby tree, pushing off sharply with his feet so that he was once again airborne, and drew his throwing arm back. With a shout of effort, Naruto threw the ninja stars at his opponent, who was recovering from the sudden, but powerful blow across the face. The knives curved through the air as they flew, and their sound catching the attention of the Head-shaken Jonin.

Looking up, the white haired man let out a yell of shock and, gripping the trunk he was lying against, pushed himself up into a 360 degree back-flip, and landed on all fours against the length of tree. The stars struck the imprint where he was once stuck in, causing the man to gulp at how close he had come to being skewered.

"Whoa…" Makoto exclaimed, a smirk crossing his features as he looked up towards the boy, crouched in a rather advanced fighting stance on top of the large tree stump. "This is getting exciting. It's been a long time since I've come up against such a young, skilled opponent like you. Even though you're still young, Naruto, you're showing a lot of promise!"

Naruto grinned. Taking that as his initiative, Makoto pushed off the tree he was crouching against and leapt straight at his opponent. His flight through the air only took a split second, and when he reached the area above the stump, through a powerful, right fist straight at his opponent. Naruto side-stepped to his left while grabbing the flying fist by the wrist with his right hand, and turned in the direction of the punch. Making an elaborate twist, the boy attempted to get a lock on his opponent, but Makoto managed to twist out of the boy's vice grip, and land safely. Getting back onto his opponent, the adult sent a left hook curling through the air at his opponent, only for Naruto to duck under it, spin on his axis, and sent a right elbow into his opponent's stomach. Makoto chopped down with a double palm strike, causing Naruto's attack to lose its forward momentum when the direction of force was intercepted. Makoto continued with a right kick straight upwards, Naruto leaning back, and also leaping back to keep distance. The Jonin brought his leg back down in a axe kick, only for Naruto to leap to his right, and perform a commando roll across the stump. Makoto's kick struck the stump, and dented it with a loud bang of force.

Quickly getting back into a crouched position, at the same time Makoto spun around to face him, Naruto lowered his stance before leaping straight at his opponent. With a shout, the boy sent a right hook through and while in mid-air, followed by a left round-house kick, a right follow-up backward round-house kick, a left straight-up kick, then a right over-head punch, which brought him straight down like a falling meteor. Makoto avoided all the attacks, and was no less then a little stunned at the boy's ferocity and advancement in taijutsu. Withdrawing his fist from the small dent he made in the stump, Naruto clenched both fists and brought his right leg back. With a yell, he struck out with a side kick at his opponent's legs, Makoto moving it around and out of the way to exit his opponent's range of attacks. Naruto continued by slamming both hands onto the surface of the stump and swiping at the ninja's feet with a left lily-sweep kick. Makoto had enough time to crouch down and push off into the air before the kick could hit, which allowed him to escape the attack's range.

Performing a variety of flips as he soared straight up through the air, Makoto eventually directed himself downwards, then plummeted straight down head first. Bringing his right fist back, the man swiftly shot at his opponent with a powerful punch, the attack cracking the stump and sending a cloud of dust and debris in every direction. The extraordinary crash of force was enough to scare the daylights out of some nearby birds, but not enough to stagger his opponent.

Naruto had managed to jump out of the way and off of the stump in the nick of time, and when he did, was now standing in an attack position about ten meters out from the cloud of smoke and dust, which was the result of his opponent's attack. Just as the boy was glaring into the cloud of debris, he suddenly became aware of a light ping of metal on metal, followed by the grinding of small weapons as it was drawn back. By the time he was able to see the shadow of his opponent through the dust cloud, he could hear the knives being thrown. As expected, Naruto saw an entire cluster of a dozen kunai flying straight at him, which prompted him to crouch low, and then leap off of the ground straight up into the tree tops above. The kunai missed him, and the yellow haired boy vanished into the leaves of the canopy. Silence fell.

Fanning away the dust, Makoto turned his sights skyward, in the direction his opponent went, but couldn't see him anywhere. So, putting energy into his legs, the Jonin followed after him into the treetops above. He shot through the leaves, emerging into a unique, open area above the ground, within the trees. He landed atop of a thick, moss covered branch, sticking out of one of the surrounding redwoods. Makoto stood there, arms at his sides and looking from left to right through the darkness of the thick growths. It was like he was trying to find a mouse, and that mouse happened to be a surprisingly dangerous boy, capable of unleashing very accurate attacks. It worried and amazed Makoto at the same time, who was beginning to feel a lot of pride towards Naruto.

As he continued searching for him through the greenery, he began to speak.

"You're really good, Naruto," Makoto exclaimed. "You're strong, you're fast, and you are incredibly skilled. Minato and Kushina have taught you well…" A rustling in some nearby branches and leaves caught his attention, and he turned towards them with a serious expression in play. "The key to being a ninja is his or her stealth, able to hide away, and camouflage their presence like a leaf insect. But if the predator becomes aware of the ninja's presence, then all hope of a surprise attack is lost. You must focus more on being invisible." Makoto slowly approached the said branches, reaching into the pouch behind him, and drawing another kunai knife. He brought it behind him, readying to strike. "I guess you've already learned that lesson…"

All of a sudden, the branch beneath his feet suddenly disappeared as it crumbled into a dozen pieces of a log, as if it were sliced up into pieces by some invisible force, and Makoto felt himself falling. Growling, in his fall, the man reached out and grabbed the nearest thing he could, which turned out to be one of the overhanging vines. Like Tarzan, he used it to swing himself onto another branch, but that vine too gave way as a yellow blur suddenly shot by, and cut it. Using the force he had gained from the swing, Makoto back-flipped forward and landed on the said branch he was aiming for. When he did, he spun around, and watched as his opponent landed on the branch of another tree across from him. There, the two of them stood in opposing fighting stances, glaring each other down with a ferocity only seen in real combat.

For a minute or so, the two stood in silence, glaring at each other as if they were equal in combat. Then, as if the bells of the tower were struck, the two of them broke off their glare, and then sprinted off down the length of their tree branch. Naruto broke left, and Makoto broke right, so that they were running opposite of each other. They leapt from branch to branch, both of them drawing a cluster of kunai and shuriken, and then drawing them back. One after another, for every branch they landed on, the two fighters threw their weapons at the other. Like bullets whizzing through the air, the two ninja began exchanging attack after attack, with every single blade missing the other, due to their high reflex actions and speed. It was then, after tossing attacks down to their last kunai, the two of them then changed direction, and flew straight at one another.

Crossing paths through the air, the two fighters exchanged strikes, a loud clang going out as they passed each other. Landing against opposite trees once again, the two of them pushed off and flew at each other again, once again exchanging kunai strikes, which let off another loud clang. The two of them repeated this mode of attack again and again, while keeping on the move down the line of trees they were using as the mainstay for their attacks. Then, after a minute or so of continuous jumping and quick strikes, the two of them eventually stopped, and threw their kunai at each other. The knives struck in mid-air, and plummeted to the forest floor below.

Makoto, standing a top of another branch, watched the knives fall till they disappeared, and when they did, glared back up at his opponent. Spotting Naruto's own eyes, the Jonin reached up with his right hand and ran it through the lock of his hair. When he withdrew it, three kunai knives suddenly appeared, flashing into view and giving Naruto warning of the coming attack. Smirking, Makoto drew his hand back, dropping into an attack stance with his weapons at the ready. However, he was to get one hell of a surprise.

Around the time Makoto drew his knives, Naruto had slipped on his fingerless fighting gloves, which were tightened and secured for his next move. Holding his hands at his sides, the boy then stretched out the fingers on his left hand, cracking them in their new confines, and clenching his fist tightly. Then, with a silent crack of energy, he extended his fingers, and a sudden strand of blue wire suddenly curled out around his arm and outwards, catching Makoto's attention. Before he could react however, he suddenly caught sight of the same strand of blue wire flash past his head, and after watching it flicker a few times, became aware of its effects. Out of the corner of his eyes, he suddenly saw the three kunai held lose their blades, so that he was only holding their handles. The blades fell from the canopy and towards the ground floor below, leaving him with blunt-ended weapons that resulted in his eyes widening in disbelief.

He stared directly at Naruto as he placed his right hand behind him and motioned his left hand through the air, the invisible wire flashing blue withdrawing into his fingertip gracefully. The boy was smirking at Makoto, the yellow haired ninja sending a chill down the Jonin's spine.

"Ninja threads," the man whispered, blinking in surprise with sweat trickling down the sides of his face, as he relinquished his hold on his blunt kunai handles. "I didn't know you could do that?"

"They're not ninja threads, Makoto-sensei," Naruto exclaimed childishly, the delight in his voice indicating that he was responding to the man's praises. At the same time, the boy tightened the glove on his left hand. He reached up with the fingertips of his left hand to his teeth, his jaw seemingly biting down on his tips as he pulled them back, a network of the same blue threads suddenly appearing. They flashed into view, weaving between Naruto's fingers and teeth with a deadly aura surrounding them. "They're high-velocity monomolecular wires, created through the combining of strongly bonded molecules in the air, and heightened in strength using chakra. Using these…I can cut through any metal, liquid or solid in existence!" This information did not sit too well with Makoto.

"W-Where did you learn to use those," the man asked, blinking in shock. Naruto smirked, bringing up his right hand and lacing it through the wire as well. He extended both arms outwards, the wires expanding as well and beginning to weave through the air around him. Lacing through the trees, the boy prepped them up for his next attack.

"My mother taught me," Naruto replied.

Makoto nodded, a smile forming on his face. _"So…Kushina Namikaze taught him that ability. As expected, I knew the __**Angel of Death**__ would pass down her most dangerous ability to him. Guess he wants to show it off…"_ Grinning, Makoto reached for his hair and ran his right hand through it. When he pulled it out, he drew along with it, three kunai knives, and strands of what looked to be ninja threads along with them, which stretched and stretched on as he brought his hand back down to his side, his kunai blades sticking from his hand. "Well then Naruto, if you're going to be using such a dangerous technique, then I have no restraints in showing you why they call me the _Snare Ninja _of Konoha! You ready?"

Naruto nodded. Grinning, Makoto brought back his right hand and threw it forward and across, tossing the three kunai blades straight at his opponent, the invisible threads lengthening at the same rate the knives were. These threads seemed to emerge from the man's very hands, but were actually laced around and connected to his head in some way. Naruto saw the kunai come flashing towards him, and acted, ducking low to avoid the first one! Reaching back, he drew his sword, using the half-drawn blade to block the next one, then fully drew it as he stood up, and slashed it at the third, knocking it back. Taking the sword into two hands, he then split it into two separate blades, and prepared himself for battle.

The kunai knives came flying back to their owner, whom controlled them using his special ninja threads. Clenching on them with his fists, he swung the three blades around him expertly, maintaining his stance and balance. Before long, and after several swings made by his knives, he tossed them at Naruto one after the other, beginning a combination attack. Naruto was prepared, using his swords, he pushed himself into defensive mode and, while walking across the length of branch, began blocking the knives coming his way, loud clanging sounds echoing around as Makoto continued honing his assault. His kunai were acting as if they were attached to elastic wire, being with drawn and thrown back at rapid speeds, their energy staggering even Naruto. The boy growled as he slashed at the incoming attacks, twirling his Dao blades in his hands in order to block and move around some trick strikes made by the still distant Makoto.

Grinning, Makoto began operating himself on autopilot, using his right hand to continue making signs through the air, directing his three kunai on the attack, and using his left hand to reach for a new weapon. Flicking his wrist, five ninja stars suddenly appeared in his hand, each of them tied by invisible strands of thread. With his right hand commanding the kunai, the Jonin then suddenly threw forward the five shuriken stars, watching them zip through the air, curving around in different directions to confuse the boy. Naruto saw it coming, and leapt backwards through the air, bringing his swords to bear and blocking the incoming stars one after another. The bombardment of kunai became overly stressing for the boy, seeing as Naruto was visibly gritting his teeth as he dodged and blocked the incoming blades. Landing on yet another tree, he suddenly had to leap swiftly to his left to avoid a full barrage from every single blade in the Jonin's arsenal, all of them impaling the branch with resounding thuds.

Tracking the boy, Makoto grinned. Bringing his hands about, he laced the threads around him through the air, before suddenly bringing them down to his chest, placing them together in what looked to be a hand sign. What was to follow was a whole series of hand signs; the threads laced through the man's fingers artistically, but did not restrict his movements. Once he finished his hand signs with a Tiger hand seal, Makoto then extended his fingers outward, shooting more strands through the air, which moved with the wind through the trees. Naruto had no idea what was coming to him, till he was forced to dodge another attack of thread tied kunai.

The attack forced him to jump backward, which proved to be his biggest mistake when he ended up caught in what he thought was a web, when it was in fact a network of chakra threads, laced through the trees like web. Tangled in the threads the moment he entered the air space's proximity, the boy attempted to get himself out of his predicament, but unable to move either of his swords, since they too were sewn down, the boy could do nothing but match as his opponent called back his kunai and ninja stars back into his hands, and prep himself for his finishing move. Slapping his hands together and forming another series of quick hand signs, the adult shinobi smirked and stretched out both his arms outwards, before bringing them both in, in one swift motion.

"Ninja Art: _Maiden Snare Jutsu_!"

Suddenly, Naruto's ears caught the sound of kunai whizzing through the air, thousands by what he could tell, coming in from all around him. So, glancing through the tree tops surrounding him, Naruto suddenly became aware of the full capacity of the jutsu the man was using. In a blink of an eye, thousands of ninja blades tied to threads came flying through the trees and branches, through the air from every single direction. The attack literally filled up the air a great deal as it shot towards its bound opponent right in the center of all three dimensions. Makoto, knowing the deadliness of the attack, however, slowed down the rate of kunai flight in hesitation, but got the shock of his life as he saw Naruto smirking at him through the mass of knives still flying towards him, giving clear indication that he was going to be fine. Makoto, therefore, pulled them all in full force, and the wave upon wave of kunai began pummeling Naruto's bodies, the threads tightening as soon as they were lodged into their target's body.

Within seconds, Naruto's body looked like he had been run over by thousands of hedgehogs, the kunai stuck in him striking every vital and nerve point, rendering him paralyzed. His body laid limp where it hung, tied down by the threads crisscrossing through the trees, as well as the web of kunai tied threads. Makoto breathed out, blinking in shock as he stared at the lifeless body of Naruto. He couldn't believe that he had done what he did, and shook his head in disbelief, eyes tightly shut. It was then when he opened his eyes, and looked back at the webbing of threads, he got the shock of his life when all he saw was a log resting in the middle of the net, impaled by the thousands of kunai. Blinking, the man glanced around him, trying to find out what had happened to his opponent. But before he could say a word, he suddenly felt his arms snap to his sides, and his body be thrown off its feet. A split second later, he found himself tied up to a tree, invisible strands of wire wrapped tightly against his chest and upper body, glittering in the sunlight that shone through the treetops.

Struggling against these bonds, Makoto looked up, only to be introduced to the sight of a untouched Naruto standing on the same branch he had once been standing against, arms crossed over and hands open, his fingers clearly showing the sight of wire strands escaping the tips, and curling upwards around him to unknown areas of airspace. The white haired Jonin blinked in surprise, noting the cut across Naruto's left cheek, as well as the light bruise on his forehead. Otherwise, the boy was unharmed by the kunai barrage. After a moment or so of analyzing each others' situation, Makoto let out a chuckle and shook his head.

"You're doing well, Naruto. Your parents would be very proud of you," Makoto exclaimed. Naruto smiled, that innocent look crossing his expression again as he replied to his sensei's kind words.

"My parents taught me everything I needed to survive, Makoto-sensei!" Naruto said, lowering his head and grinning a second later. "And I learned how to survive…"

"If that's the case," the Jonin began, looking up with a smirk. "Then I should recommend you to the academy now!" In a blink of an eye, Makoto's form suddenly disappeared in a puff of white smoke. When that cloud dispersed, the once full body of a flesh and blood ninja was replaced by a log, just as Naruto had done.

Frowning, Naruto then leapt backwards fast and far, just as a bombardment of over a dozen kunai came falling from the tree tops above. The moment Naruto made that move and found himself still flying backwards through the air and decline in altitude, the boy brought the two fingers on both hands together and formed a 't' shape with them, and with a small output of chakra, initiated his next technique.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he shouted. That moment, five or so other Naruto's appeared around him in puffs of white smoke. One after another, the shadow clones broke away, heading in totally different directions in the form of yellow blurs, vanishing into the forest beyond. This left Naruto with only one shadow clone for himself. The shadow clone above him reached down with his hands, and Naruto grabbed them, and sing the momentum in Naruto's descent, the Shadow Clone replica tossed the real Naruto up into the tree tops. The yellow haired boy went flying straight up like a flung kunai, the shadow clone he had used dispersing in a cloud of smoke.

Shooting through the thickness of trees, Naruto emerged into yet another canopy level wide and expanded from the last one. Losing momentum, the boy then landed on yet another tree branch and crouched low, his eyes scanning from left to right for his target. He didn't have to search for long, when he suddenly heard a zip of kunai suddenly come from his right, and he skidded back, drawing a kunai of his own from his pouch and getting into a stance. Three more kunai came from his twelve o'clock, and the boy twirled his kunai in his hand and brought it in front of him, expertly blocking them with excellent proficiency. When the kunai were dealt with, Naruto had to almost instantly leap to his right, across to another branch when Makoto suddenly plummeted from the tree tops and kicked straight at the spot where he used to be. The Jonin's powerful kick literally broke the branch he had been standing on, causing him to back-flip onto the remains of the branch still attached to the tree and take a defensive stance.

Naruto landed on yet another branch just then meters across from the last one, and when he did, he immediately pushed off and flew straight towards his opponent at an amazing rate. Unsheathing his sword, Naruto immediately began lashing out at Makoto with relentless, advanced strikes with such speed and strength that the Jonin was forced into a quick retreat. With his own kunai, the white haired ninja began blocking and dodging the attacks as best as he could, while at the same time falling back from branch to branch. Naruto proved himself an excellent swordsman, causing Makoto to sweat with every mind-boggling attack he made.

Landing a top of a really big branch, the two of them continued battling it out, Makoto unleashing some of his own strikes upon the boy, who placed himself into defensive mode the moment he saw it. The yellow haired boy spun his sword around him using various parries to block the thrust and slash actions from his opponent. Ducking under a kunai stab, Naruto slashed upwards with his sword, striking Makoto's wrist with the side of his blade, knocking the kunai out of the man's grip and into the air. Naruto then pivoted forward and side-kicked with a powerful right leg. The blow caused a loud bang to ring out, and sent Makoto flying back into the tree-trunk the branch was attached to. Sheathing his sword, Naruto brought both his hands back behind him, cuffing them, then throwing both of them forward and up, a series of invisible wires shooting forth from his fingers. The wires curled through the air, and wrapped around the tree trunk area above Makoto. The Jonin shook his head and glared up, only to become aware of the flashes of blue wire surrounding him. He looked up, where he saw the wire quickly wrap around the tree.

With a grin in play, Naruto tugged on his wires, the threads cleanly slicing through the trunk, and bringing down the entire treetop above the cutting points, down on his opponent. Makoto growled and leapt to his left, avoiding the incoming, collapsing logs, which crashed down onto the branch he had been standing on, causing it to break as well. Naruto chased after him as the branch beneath him gave way, and pursued his opponent leaping through the trees. The chase was on, with Naruto bringing out his monomolecular wires to bear. Motioning his hands forward, the wires flashed into view, whipping forward with lighting fast speed and curling around a couple of trees standing on both sides of him up ahead. Then, tugging on his wires, he used the energy he put behind it to fling him forward. This sent him hurling through the air, right above the retreating Makoto. The Jonin glanced behind him to check if anyone was following him, and was surprised to see that no one was following him.

Flipping through the air fifteen meters above his still retreating opponent, Naruto directed himself so that his upper body was facing the ground. Now flying through the air at a controlled rate, the boy unleashed his invisible wires again, fling them through the air downwards, and capturing the upcoming branches Makoto was planning on using. Also wrapping around tree trunks surrounding these branches, the boy pulled on them hard, slicing up the branches the moment Makoto touched down on them. When he did, the man wasn't able to kick off fast enough when the trees surrounding him started to cave and collapse. Makoto fell with the plummeting branches and logs, looking around him for something to catch onto.

Before the Jonin could fully adjust to his new situation, at that exact moment, Naruto came flying into the falling debris, arms crossed over him, fingers locked and extended and monomolecular wires whipping around him. The boy parted his crossed arms, slicing through several of the opposing logs and throwing four of the big ones he had wrapped around straight at Makoto. The falling Jonin growled and reached up, running his right hand through his hair and drawing three kunai. Using these, he immediately threw them up at the logs thrown towards him, which immediately stopped them, accept for the one, which slammed into his stomach and sent him falling at a much faster rate. It was at that moment of impact, the form of Makoto suddenly vanished in a puff of smoke, replaced by a different log, thanks to the unlimited supply around them. Naruto frowned, knowing what had happened.

Before the boy could change his situation, he was suddenly attacked from behind by a series of kunai attached to threads coming out from behind a cluster of falling debris. When they wrapped around his body, they immediately tightened, and sliced through the boy. It was then, Naruto's body suddenly exploded into a cloud of white smoke, indicating that he had been one of the shadow clones produced. Only three remained.

Makoto growled, curling up and beginning to forward flip-spin through the air. Using this method to control his fall, he landed on an outstretched branch, which caught him about thirty meters above the ground. The white haired Jonin glared down towards the forest floor as the mass of branches and logs crashed with mind-boggling force and weight. Frowning, the man contemplated on how close he had come to becoming a pancake. But then, sounds of an incoming presence caused him to be pulled from his thoughts, and with a gasp of shock, the man leapt off of his branch and out of the way as a familiar yellow haired boy came crashing down through the branch, sword drawn. Growling at having missed his opponent, the boy split his weapon and sent one of them into the side of the tree opposite him. Slamming his feet against it, he skidded to a stop down its length, sword held in place as assistance.

Glaring upwards, the boy was about to push off, when he was suddenly overcome by various kunai attached to threads flying right at him. The weapons shot passed though, but the threads over-lapped the trunk he was standing against. The threads struck him, and the kunai wrapped around the tree upon trapping their target. However, the moment the series of kunai and threads had their target tied to the tree, the Naruto within it vanished in a puff of smoke, surprising the white haired Jonin perched on the branch ten meters above.

Makoto frowned, looking up just in time to see another Naruto flying straight at him. He pushed off, leaping backwards through the treetops to avoid the slash of a dao blade made by his young opponent. However as soon as he did so, another Naruto suddenly appeared in front of him, and sent a powerful left side-kick straight into his stomach, which sent him straight into the trunk of yet another tree. Shaking off the surprise attack, Makoto looked up in time to see Naruto throwing his invisible wires straight at him. The wires wrapped around the tree trunk he was imprinted against, and sliced right through. Another two wires then pulled at the trunk attachment he was against, and threatened to send him packing. But not when he was still in the game.

Leaping up, Makoto crouched against the section of tree being pulled towards his opponent, and when he did, pushed off and flew at the Naruto controlling the wires. The boy saw this, and grinned, jumping and flipping over the man just in time to see him fly passed. In doing so, the yellow haired boy tugged on his wires, and threw the log he had snagged right underneath him, in the same direction Makoto had flown in. The white haired Jonin glared behind him, growling as he saw he log flying straight at him. Reaching up, the man ran both his hands through his hair, before drawing a series of kunai knives, about a dozen of them, each attached to a flowing strand of ninja thread. With his weapons secured, he then flung them outwards, the threads whipping out, tightening, and creating a wall of web between him and the incoming log. Landing a top of another branch, the man watched as the log crashed into the network of threads, and got sliced to bits.

Makoto glared, continuing to bring out kunai by the dozens, and began dispersing them, throwing them in every direction possible so that they curled around several nearby trees and branches. However, just as he was about to set himself ready for his next defensive maneuver, Naruto suddenly came bursting in through the thread netting in front of him that he used to block the log. With both swords in hand, the boy flew at him, ready to strike. Makoto was not going to let that happen, and as soon as Naruto landed in front of him, the man drew a kunai and flung it at him, Naruto side-stepped under it as it passed, and struck out with his sword, right for the man's neck. It all happened at once.

Within the entanglement of threads and monomolecular wires unleashed by both fighters, was Makoto and Naruto locked in their attack positions, paused to stop themselves from killing the other. Naruto had his black blade held in his left hand placed against Makoto's neck, whereas the sword in his right hand was held back by ninja wires unleashed by the Jonin. Makoto on the other hand, had a kunai knife pointed directly at Naruto's neck, held back from finishing the strike. However, monomolecular wires produced by Naruto which were wrapped around his neck and striking arm would have sliced him to bits before he hit Naruto. A similar production went for Naruto, who had ninja threads wrapped around his neck and striking arm, and a rigged attack plan Makoto had cooked up for him. A kunai hung suspended behind Naruto's head, ready to hit him if he had continued with his sword strike to the man's neck. Over all, it was a stalemate, both fighters smirking at each other, with similar cuts from kunai blades on their right cheeks.

Suddenly, chuckling from a familiar presence emerged from the shadows, as a second Makoto walked out behind the tree trunk behind the other Makoto stuck in the stalemate with his opponent. With his arms folded the second Makoto nodded towards a second Naruto, who was perched on a nearby tree branch, right on its tip with his arms folded over his chest.

"Well done, Naruto!" Makoto exclaimed. "You did spectacularly. But…maybe we overdid it, don't you think?" The boy just shrugged, watching as both their copies suddenly dispersed into clouds of smoke. With their rigged attacks also disappearing, the two fighters could now rest easy. "Tell me something, Naruto; were you actually taking it easy on me?"

"It all depends!" Naruto exclaimed happily, the grin on his face showing his cheeky side. "I know you were…"

"Heh…you got me," Makoto said, raising both his hands in surrender. "Good exercise though. Congratulations Naruto, you've passed the given exam! Come on! Let's get back before Kinoko comes out here to look for us!"

With a nod of agreement from the yellow haired boy, the two fighters leapt from the tree tops to the ground floor below. As Naruto and Makoto walked back home to the garden, where Sakura would definitely be waiting for the two, the white haired Jonin took a long look back at the battle that had taken place, taking note of all the scars and destruction around him. The pile of chopped up trees, the slash marks and kunai lodged into tree trunks, Makoto realized how good of a ninja Naruto was going to become. Smiling, the man continued on, following Naruto's footsteps to the garden.

"_Though I have to admit, he nearly had me on the ropes there. Guess I underestimated the kid…"_ Touching the cut at his cheek, the man looked at the drops of blood that were on his hand and analyzed it. _"Maybe I shouldn't have held back that much. Naruto would have seriously injured me…or worse…killed me if I didn't have my guard up…"_

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	7. Ninja Academy

**Naruto**

_**Heart and Soul**_

_Ninja Academy_

"But he is just remarkable, Hokage-sama!" Makoto stated, waving his hands around in the air in his best efforts to visually describe or direct his point across to the old man sitting behind the desk. Of course, the strongest ninja in the village could easily see and understand what the white haired ninja was trying to explain to him, and from what he has told him so far, he was stunned. The Kai-lo shinobi guard behind him to his right and the regular shinobi to his left were also listening intently, and were also amazed, only they didn't show this visibly. "I've never seen or experienced anything like it! That boy…he's got the skill, strength and speed of a shinobi of a high-level Chunin, or even a mid-level Jonin! He could very well be as strong as Kurenai or Asuma!"

"I see. It sounds almost phenomenal, Makoto," the Hokage exclaimed with a smile. He was very well aware of these facts, but had not been given them in such detail. For one, Sarutobi first witnessed Naruto's amazing strengths when he disarmed Kurenai in the hospital, and the stance he assumed after reacquiring his weapons. The memories made him grin. "You weren't going easy on him, where you Makoto?"

"Actually…yes…but I'm sure he was going easy on me as well. It was just a simple training exercise I issued for him…"

"…A one-on-one fight between the two of you? Haven't I heard enough of such stories, like a recap on an argument between you and Kinoko?"

"Look Hokage-sama," Makoto continued, ignoring the smart comment made by the old ninja. Clearing his throat, Makoto adjusted the collar of his Jonin vest-coat and his posture. "The thing is…Naruto is stronger then any child I have ever seen in my life, Genin or not. He has extraordinary potential to become a ninja, far exceeding that of a normal child. By my standards, I can see him passing any ninja test or exam you can throw at him! Therefore, it is at my recommendation that we introduce him to the Ninja Academy!"

"What…at such a young age?" the Hokage stated, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

"Yes," Makoto said, folding his arms over his chest and closing his eyes. With his head lowered, the pondered on whether he should reveal this information yet. He had his doubts, but due to the overwhelming admiration and confidence he had in the boy, the Jonin just had to tell. It was the Hokage he was addressing anyway, and word about it was to get out whether he liked it or not. Breathing in and out, the white haired Jonin nodded his head and glanced up again through overshadowed eyes. "Listen, Hokage-sama. You may not be aware of this already, but…a year ago, I found out that Naruto's parents are Minato Namikaze and Kushina Namikaze."

It was at this statement, the Hokage raised his head and his right eyebrow. The slight surprise on his face however were dwarfed by the two other shinobi bodyguards, both of them showing looks of absolute shock, with sweat dripping down the sides of their head, eyes widened and mouths hanging open. Makoto just stared back at them, having expected these reactions, and was ready enough to start his explanations.

However, when he expected the Hokage to start making a big fuss over this news, all Makoto got was a smile and a light chuckle from the old man. This made the white haired man look at the man oddly with a look of puzzlement crossing his face. It was one for the Hokage to take a lot of subjects seriously, even if they were of little importance. But the information he just gave the old man was all but little. It was perhaps the most life changing information anyone could ever pass onto someone, and the Hokage found it…funny?

"What…?" Makoto asked. The Hokage shook his head and reached up. Removing the pipe from his mouth, he smiled at his fellow Jonin, eyes shimmering in that ever all knowing light.

"And?"

"And?!" Makoto replied in a raised voice. Now it was his turn to be startled. "What more do you want? Naruto Uzumaki is the son of the Forth Hokage, a son no one even knew Yondaime had! Doesn't this news shock you at all?!"

"Well…for your information, Makoto," Sarutobi exclaimed, taking another puff from his pipe, while tapping it with his finger to get the simmering tobacco inside of it around, just to get the best of its taste. At the same time, he eyed his fellow ninja with a smirk plastered on his face. "I've known about Minato's family business for a long time. I knew all along he and Kushina had a son. I knew all along that he'd named his son Naruto Uzumaki. And I especially know now that the Naruto you've been looking after is the Forth Hokage's own son. I'd have thought you would have figured it out the moment you saw him! The boy's resemblance to his father is unquestionable." The Hokage added by gesturing with the tip of his pipe towards the portrait of the Forth Hokage hanging up on his wall.

Makoto sighed and slapped his face with his right hand. Running it down in a distressed manner, the white haired male glared up with utter shame and embarrassment. "It was my mistake not to inform this earlier, like I should have…"

"Yet you are wondering why I'm not making such a big fuss over this information," the Hokage stated. Makoto, rectified by this revelation, nodded his head firmly as a response. Smiling, the Hokage lowered his head and laced his fingers together.

"I'm going to tell you a little story Makoto, one that you're probably familiar with. So here it goes," Sarutobi began, breathing in on his pipe and out. "Around ten years ago, in the time when the Forth Hokage was in power, there was peace in our land. The man known as Minato Namikaze brought stability to the Land of Fire and to its people…especially to those within the Village Hidden in the Leaves. To everyone and to him…everything was perfect. These were times of plenty and peace among nations, where no one was afraid of invasion from another super power. However, for the Yondaime, things for him were secretly beginning to deteriorate in the following year. After ending the conflicts between the warring nations, it put a lot of warlords and organizations out of business from selling contraband and weapons to neighboring countries, who needed them to fight in the war, and who could supply these tyrants with gold and riches. A year before Naruto was born; a lot of new enemies began to surface, who wanted the Forth Hokage dead, including the rising Akatsuki Organization, and an old enemy, Orochimaru."

"I remember those days well," Makoto stated. "After _that_ particular incident…the Forth Hokage was seen less and less in public…"

"Right you are there, Makoto," Sarutobi replied. "Minato was a very sociable person, always going out with his wife and always communing with the people, so that he could personally handle the problems in the village and fix them. However, after an attempted assassination by Orochimaru on the Yondaime, in which a big battle broke out between them and where the fiend was nearly killed, Minato thought it best to keep in doors from then on in. Since Orochimaru barely escaped, Minato knew that times were beginning to get dangerous once again. For the betterment of his family, and for the safety of his wife and new born son, he took them away to a distant village on the far reaches of the fire country, where they would live happily and in peace. While the Hokage made frequent visits to them, he continued to govern the village as best as he could. That was until the night the Kyuubi appeared. Driven to madness by the betrayer Madara, the Uchiha commanded the Fox to attack the village, but was stopped by Minato. Minato defeated Madara and the Nine-Tailed Fox that night, but Madara escaped, blinded and unable to use the Sharingan anymore, and Minato was badly weakened by trapping the Nine-Tailed Fox within him with his Jutsu."

Though everyone in the room was aware of this story, mostly out of it being one of the greatest myths in history, Makoto and the two listening guards were still stunned and bewildered. Neither one had known the great sacrifices made those nights, or had known that deeply into the Forth Hokage's life so far. It was only when the Hokage spoke these next words that light began to form around the boy, settling the mysteries surrounding his dark past.

"Knowing that he would not survive, and that if he died with the seal being incomplete, the demon would be released, the Hokage made the ultimate sacrifice. He imprisoned the demon fox within his own son," Sarutobi stated. "With his two year old son's untainted soul, heart, body and mind, Naruto could easily maintain the fox and keep it within him, under complete control, without any form of corruption or change. This simply means that Naruto controls the demon, and is not at all influenced by it…even though he may experience a nice power boost, and an annoying conversation with the fox from time to time," the Hokage exclaimed, chuckling at the end. But from the odd look he received from Makoto, he stopped, and cleared his throat. "Anyway, after completing the seal on his son, with the help from his wife, Minato passed away. Naruto and Kushina remained outside of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, in the same small village young Naruto had grown up in for most of his life. Over the next couple of years, Kushina would complete Naruto's stages of training and pass on her techniques to him, just like you had experienced for yourself. But it's not the Kyuubi in him that makes Naruto so strong. It is of the child's own flesh, will and blood that make him such an exceptional warrior."

Makoto smiled and nodded, with the two guards standing behind the Hokage also smiling. The old man's wisdom wasn't as farfetched as they thought.

"The reason why I didn't make a fuss over this and kept it to myself is because the boy has suffered too much loss in his life to be reminded of his past," Sarutobi explained. "He knows the pain of losing a family all to well, having been the one to have buried his own mother and father. All he wants to do now is start a new life with a new family…which is the reason he has been running, hiding and searching for so long. It is his strength, determination and suffering that returned him to his birth place…here…Konohagakure. I hope you can understand that Makoto."

The white haired Jonin smiled and nodded, hands held behind him upon having those words spoken to him. "I do, Hokage-sama. Heh…it's kind of ironic though. The same day you asked me to take care of the boy…I found out that night about his parents…and vowed that I would give him a new life and a new family who would love him…and take care of him. And here you are now, talking about his parents and how he has longed for a new home…"

"I guess it is kind of ironic," Sarutobi replied, taking the pipe out from his lips and poking the tip towards him. "But try to keep this under wraps. Everyone in this room is forbidden from telling anyone about the Nine-Tailed Fox, treating him like it, or speaking of the boy's parents. Am I making my self clear?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama!" all those present in the room said aloud at once.

"And as for the Kai-lo shinobi, I believe they will respect their founder Hokage's wishes to insure the boy's protection and safety, and that his wellbeing is kept perfectly. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama!" the Kai-lo bodyguard exclaimed.

"Good…now…" the Hokage said, popping the pipe back into his mouth. Grabbing a stack of papers, the old man sorted through them by shuffling them, before glancing back up at Makoto and smiled at him. "So…how's Naruto doing? I take it he's getting along with you and your family."

"Everything's going well Hokage-sama," Makoto exclaimed. "He's pretty taken with us and…it seems that my daughter is pretty much taken with him…"

"Oh…" a devilish grin spread across the Hokage's face as he looked up at the white haired ninja through shadowed eyes. "Describe it to me…"

"Well," Makoto said, shrugging, "Ever since they first laid eyes on each other, the two of them have been…inseparable! They've literally been walking around hand in hand, and Sakura is constantly following him wherever he goes. Heh…I've never seen her so happy in my life. Plus…the two of them have started training with each other, without our guidance. I believe Naruto is giving my daughter ninja training sessions of their own…"

"I see," the Sandaime exclaimed, tilting his head up at the man. "And in one word…how would you describe their relationship?"

"In one word, Hokage-sama? We_ll…I don't really know, to be honest. Kinoko and I have put a lot of thought into it! To say that they're bonding over a crush just doesn't cut it. However…if I was to put it into one word, it would have to be…love…"_

At that very moment, the scene faded from the Hokage's office in the tower, back towards the Haruno residents. With ghostly sights, a presence spurred on by the winds, we move to the backyard to where Naruto and Sakura were currently spending time. On the soft, lush grass, surrounded by the boundaries of flower patches and exotic trees, the two youngsters were right at this moment locked in their own training sessions. Just as Makoto had said, Naruto was busy coaching Sakura, having taken up duty as a sensei and role model for the girl. However, not only was he an idol to the girl, but also a figment of her admiration, a knight in shining armor of her fantasies…the country boy she had fallen in love with…

"_Love…heh…that's a pretty deep word to use, Makoto. Are you sure that's the word to use?"_

"_I'm positive. How else can you describe the relationship between them?"_

Dressed in but a white shirt and blue shorts, with no shoes, and with his sword and scarf set aside, Naruto went through the steps of proper attack formation for the eagle-style in taijutsu. Sakura followed, dressed in a red Chinese top with white linings and red shorts, a red bow tied up in her hair and her feet also made bare. Finally, to complete the descriptions, the two of them had looks of concentration etched on their faces, but also joining them, were smiles of happiness and delight.

Dropped into stances side by side, the two children were practicing going through the stances, with Naruto showing Sakura how to initiate the proper punches and kicks for her chosen style. Together, they both let out shouts for each blow and attack made; forming parries, counter-punches, blocks, and elbows all the way through. They moved in distinct directions, their forms perfectly mirroring each other. It was only when Naruto caught sight of an incorrect formation in Sakura's footwork and latest punch he stopped them, and went over to help her.

"_What? By looking at how they interact?"_

"_Not just by that Hokage-sama. But by how they play together, how they smile at each other, how they speak to each other, and how they laugh together! There's more to love then just the way a couple would hold and kiss each other. It can be simpler then that…"_

Naruto adjusted her outstretched arm, moving it up a bit, and helping her bench her knees properly. He stood behind her, showing her through the movements himself, which made the girl blush brightly and close her eyes to hide her embarrassment. When she opened them, she looked to her left to her shoulder, where he saw the boy's head propped on it and a wide, childish grin on his lips. Sakura giggled at the smile and looked away, folding her arms over her chest in an attempt to shy away her blush.

"_More innocent then that?"_

"_Yup! Just by looking at them you can clearly see the future ahead for the two of them…"_

It was then Sakura managed to slip out of Naruto's grip and, leaping forward, she spun around and crouched low like a tiger. Acting like a cat, she let out a fake purr, then leapt forward, tackling the boy so that the two of them crashed to the soft grass beneath them. Laughing happily together, they rolled along the grass under the sun, disturbing a pair of butterflies resting on a nearby flower. When the two children stopped, they saw the two blue butterflies flutter past them, and became awed by their intricate aerial ballet. Giggling, Sakura got up off of Naruto and went to chase them, arms outstretched and hands extended, grabbing the air as she lunged at the two butterflies. The two insects broke away, pursued by the pink haired girl. Naruto also joined her, laughing as he chased the two beautiful, wing-beating bugs.

Unbeknownst to them, the two children were watched from the kitchen window by Kinoko, the woman smiling at the sight of Naruto and Sakura having fun together. Their time brought back fond memories of hers, and also filled her with hope and joy.

Soon enough, the butterfly that Naruto was chasing fluttered up to him, and landed on his nose, which caused him to go cross-eye just to look at it. Sakura saw this, and giggled at the funny sight, but laughed even more when Naruto sneezed and the butterfly flew away to rejoin its mate. The pink haired girl skipped over to Naruto, and wrapped her arms around his stomach, hugging him tightly and nuzzling his chest. The boy hugged her back, both of them smiling at each other.

"_Are you worried, Makoto?"_

"_No…_

…

…_not at all…"_

* * *

_**Four years later…**_

_**Konoha Ninja Academy…**_

The sounds of metal clashing against metal could be heard echoing all around outside, as a dueling pair of eleven year-olds battled it out within the boarders of a marked, simple dirt covered arena. Kicking up dust that formed into light clouds around them, the clearly female kunoichi trainee and her partner slashed at each other with kunai, the blades grinding against each other with every lock, and flashing through the air with every strike made, attempted and tried.

Back on the sidelines, far out of reach of the two battling students, stood a crowd of other children believing their destiny was to become a great shinobi, just like their parents were or had dreamed of. Accompanying them was a very familiar face, one that a lot of students have come to know, respect and worship even. The man had black hair neatly done with two distinct bangs of thick hair hanging on either side of his face, which was half-hidden behind a high-collared, purple cloak with black-linings. Under that, a purple standard ninja outfit with net-mesh and white strappings on the arms and legs. The only really visible parts of the rest of his body besides the head that were seen at all times were his legs beneath the knees, and his feet. He wore issued blue sandals with white shin-guards, tightly worn and distinguishable.

It was Itachi Uchiha, and he was currently surveying his students of his class with watchful, intent eyes. At the moment, he was grading the two sparring ninjas on their attacks and blocks, watching their fluent movements and ticking the marking boxes beside their names. It was under each category, you could clearly see that the two students were scoring perfect on everyone. Itachi was clearly impressed.

Locking blades, Naruto and Sakura glared at each other. While Sakura was biting tooth and nail through visibly gritted teeth in order to match her opponent, her yellow haired opponent wasn't even trying. None the less, the two of them have proven themselves exceptional fighters, and after engaging each other in that final death grapple, they both pushed off of each other, skidding across the ground to an abrupt stop. When the clouds of dust faded, Itachi smiled and nodded his head in certainty. He placed the clipboard under his arm, and clapped his hands together in an ever congratulatory manner.

"Well done Naruto and Sakura! You both did well…great skill, great strength, and excellent fall-back stances," the Uchiha exclaimed in that monotone voice he used, although it hinted volumes of enthusiasm and sense of pride. "You two are getting better at this. Keep it up…"

Naruto and Sakura grinned, exiting their stances and dusting themselves down. Bowing to each other, the two of them eventually left the arena vacant for the next pair. This meant that the two of them could catch up on a much deserved break, although Naruto wasn't at all tired. Taking positions side-by-side in the crowd of their fellow students, the pair glanced at each other, shared a loving smile before Sakura wrapped her arms around her boyfriend and laid her head against his shoulder.

However, though the two of them are seemingly together as boyfriend and girlfriend, in reality, neither of them have shared their first kiss, but they both remained incredibly devoted to each other.

"You did well, Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered.

"So did you, Naruto-kun," the pink haired girl replied, giggling as she nuzzled his arm. The usually quiet boy smiled back at her and allowed her to get comfortable.

The two of them had changed considerably over the past four years, and the students they had been with since grade school before moving to the academy had noticed these changes as well.

Just like every growing child, both of them changed in both body and in mind. Naruto had grown a few inches, and was about a couple centimeters taller then Sakura. His hair remained yellow and spiky, and his youthful face gave off that image of pure innocence, from which opponents would continue to underestimate him from. Furthermore, his body has developed a little muscle, and he also looked stronger too. Aside from the fact that he still wore his symbolic scarf around his neck and the dao swords sheathed on his back, he now wore an orange vest with a high collar secured by his scarf, and a black long-sleeved shirt that hugged at his upper-body, showing off his developing muscles. He also wore a pair of black cargos with blue sandals.

Sakura had also gone through a couple of outfit changes herself, but has settled for her latest one for quite some time now. Presently, she wore a red Chinese vest with white linings, especially up front, with ninja shirt mesh underneath, with the short sleeves seen around her shoulders and upper arms. Below her exposed belly cut, she wore a light brown, short battle robe skirt with scroll pouches on both sides above the side-splits, and black, figure-hugging spandex shorts. She also wore a pair of dark grey sandals, and a white scarf around her neck. She had taken up an appearance similar to her love interest, and has also developed a liking to her short haircut, making her look more womanly in Naruto's eyes, though she always was to him.

After getting comfortable together, the pair made themselves blend into the crowd, and rested back to watch the next pair duel. As it turns out, it was Shikamaru vs. Hinata. Although it weirded him out when the girl stepped back when he assumed his stance, she eventually pulled herself together with encouragement from her sensei, and the two of them begun their battle.

Today was a very exciting day for the students of Konoha's Ninja Academy, because today was their graduation day, and everyone was bouncing on the toes of their feet in excitement. The most skittish just could not contain their joy, while the most serious ones stood in a distant corner with their arms folded and tapped their foot impatiently. These were common actions and emotions to be expressed by those children held in the highest confidence by their senseis. But those that had a balance of both seriousness and childishness were able to remain steadfast, as if this day was just a normal day. Naming a few would be Naruto, Sakura, Hinata and Shino (even though nobody could tell whether that guy was happy or not, he was as stiff as a petrified tree).

The final tests proceeded smoothly and on schedule, and by the time the last pair were done, Itachi hurried the students back into the building where their next teacher would be waiting for them. Right on the tick, the school's bell rung, and once he was certain everyone had made it inside, Itachi made his way indoors, double checking the papers on his clipboard. He sighed and shook his head, passing through the open corridors of the ground floor of the building, as he made his way to hand his papers into Iruka-sensei, the homeroom teacher.

"_I don't mind substitute work, I'm just not used to so many children…"_ the Uchiha groaned, before a smile sprouted on his face. _"Oh well…at least I got to see my little brother today…"_

"Hey, Itachi!" a voice suddenly called down from the side office he had just passed, causing the young man to stop and turn around. When he did, his eyes fell upon the familiar face of Asuma. The combat ninja of Konoha, otherwise one of the assigned teachers at this school for this year, he was one of the best, as well as an associate of Itachi. They may have had their ups, downs and arguments, but the bad times were behind them.

"Oh…Asuma, good afternoon," Itachi exclaimed in his usual monotone voice.

"Good afternoon to you too," the man replied, coming to stand just outside of the office he has been occupying. "I take it class went well?"

"Yes…it went well," the Uchiha replied, smiling.

"No troubles at all, I hope…"

"Very little to none," Itachi exclaimed, eyes flickering as he turned around a bit more. "I must say, this year has planted in the garden of our classrooms seeds of many exceptional Genin candidates. I am certain we'll be seeing a lot of promise from these youngsters in the future."

"Hmm…Iruka's graduating homeroom, I take it?" Itachi nodded in response. "I see. Well then, I have to agree with you there, Itachi. It'll be quite difficult for us to finalize the selections for tomorrow! You are aware that only fifteen of them will be able to make it, right?"

"Yes…yes I am," Itachi said with a smile. "I take it you'll be taking a team on this year, Asuma?"

"Of course," the shinobi replied with a not, shifting the cigarette around in his mouth as he placed his hands on his hips. In the background behind him, the head of another familiar face stuck out from the classroom Asuma had been working in. That head was soon followed by the raven haired, red eyed Kurenai. Itachi glanced at her only briefly, before looking back at Asuma as if he hadn't noticed a thing. "How can I pass up an opportunity to train a team of my own? Heh…my old man's allowing us to have our pick, depending on their skill and strength that will determine their compatibility to work in a team, as well as relationship history. "

Itachi nodded, just staring at Asuma for the next few seconds in silence, before his eyes eventually glanced over at Kurenai. The woman had been left out of his attention since her appearance, up until now, and the Uchiha began making quick analysis of the pair and the singular office room they were confined too. If he wasn't so dense, then he would have noticed it sooner without a second thought. He looked back over at Asuma and smirked.

"Getting a little cozy I see, Asuma," Itachi said, glancing back over at Kurenai and nodding to the slightly surprised shinobi. "You and Kurenai seem to be spending a lot of time together lately…more so then usual. Is there something you're not telling me and the others?"

A brilliant shade of red suddenly streaked across Kurenai's cheeks, immediately forcing her to look away, whereas Asuma developed a slight streak of red and closed his eyes. "What? Up yours, Itachi! There's nothing going on between me and Asuma!" Well that practically threw all hope of further defenses against the Uchiha's prying out the window for the couple.

"Oh really?" Itachi said with an amused grin, his eyes taking note of her ruffled hair and the way her top was barely hanging onto her right shoulder, having slid down due to reasons he did not want to get intimate about. "Well then, carry on." Itachi looked the two of them up and down once more, making a few more notes before walking away with a semi-amused and disturbed look etched out on his face.

Asuma and Kurenai sighed, turning towards each other with relieved looks on their faces. Kurenai adjusted her top and fluffed out her hair, whereas Asuma tucked in his disheveled shirt and zipped up his vest, having forgotten the important qualities his outfit should bare.

"Isn't it becoming a little too obvious?" Asuma asked.

"I believe so," Kurenai replied, straightening her headband and making sure her applied lipstick wasn't smudged. "How many others do you think know?"

"Hmm…Kakashi…?"

"Huh? Hell no! He's so caught up in his reading he wouldn't give a rat's ass about us!"

"You know what…bad example," Asuma replied, sighing and scratching his head, while turning his eyes towards the ceiling.

* * *

_**Later that day…**_

"By the will of the Hokage, the school staff, administrators, and of the eyes of Konoha, I can proudly and happily announce that you have all graduated from Konohagakure's Ninja Academy!" Iruka exclaimed with his hands behind his back and a big grin plastered on his face. He held his nose up high to all the students sitting behind their desks with their headbands in hand or secured around their foreheads, eyeing them all and seeing the big smiles on their faces. "You have all made this academy and its members proud this year. Congratulations!"

A big cheer erupted from the students present in the room, all those who had been holding up their pent of excitement from the beginning of the day letting it all out in one major uproar. Accompanying this crowd of cheering children from all different families and clans included Kiba, Ino, Choji, Sakura and many more familiar faces they have spent their entire year with. Naruto was sitting in his seat with his arms folded, smiling proudly and nodding his head. Sasuke was surprisingly also grinning, clapping his hands together a couple of times in characteristic congratulations to all his cheering pupils, and also spending some on himself. Once the cheering was through, and those head bands that were thrown into the air were gathered up by their owners, Iruka held up his right hand for silence. Once quietness had fallen, he reestablished himself onto his next statement.

"Now that you have all graduated, you are hereby considered ninja in this village, and must now continue on with your lives carrying the weight of a shinobi's duties, responsibilities and honor on your shoulders. You have all been blessed with the receiving of your headbands, and have had your training overseen by some of the finest ninja in this village. You will now act upon what you have been taught, but still live your lives well and long enough to enjoy it," Iruka stated, still smiling.

All the students were listening intently, their excitement and enthusiasm having yet to falter. If anything else, that excitement and energy had increased, even though their bodies were still recovering from their previous outburst. Sitting in silence, the rows of students waited patiently with open ears, as their beloved Chunin homeroom teacher continued his little talk.

"Furthermore, I have no hesitation in announcing that tomorrow will be your team induction day, where you will all be assigned into a three man teams, with an elite Jonin assigned to your team to oversee your continued training, leadership and the missions that you will be undertaking. I expect full maturity and behavior from you on that day, as well as the Jonin who will be taking you under his or her wing. You will report here tomorrow, and will be collected by your Jonin instructors and taken to your designated areas," Iruka stated, looking from one student after another. With a final nod, the young man gave them the thumbs up. "Dismissed…"

* * *

"Now…are _all_ of my volunteer Jonin partaking in this year's Genin team assembling, present?" Sarutobi asked, looking around the room at all the quiet faces staring at him, giving them their utmost attention. Smiling, the old man nodded his head and pulled up the list of names he was given of all this year's academy graduates by Iruka. His eyes scanning over this list once, he then looked back up at the ninjas standing before him and began to speak. "Very well then, now that you're all here, I shall now open up the floor for those who have made up their minds on the students they wish to have on their team! For those who have already made their decisions, speak up, and I will assign you a number, as well as give you a finalization on your chosen team members."

It was at this statement a certain, silver haired Jonin stepped forward, making his presence known to all those in the room. The man who is known as the _Copy-Ninja_ of Konoha, and the one man responsible for holding up this meeting for over half an hour due to his timely and anticipated absence! It was Kakashi. Sarutobi set his eyes upon the ninja, and when he did, lowered his head in sort dread.

"(Sigh)…Kakashi Hatake, the last to show up to this meeting and the first to make his decision known. How ironic," Sarutobi murmured, causing several of the Jonin present to snigger in amusement. Some however, including Itachi Uchiha, just shut their eyes and smirked at the hilarity of the Hokage's title bestowment upon the silent, Icha Icha crazy ninja. This was later dispersed with when the Third Hokage looked up at the man through overshadowed eyes and recapped on his earlier announcement. "Alright, who have you chosen?"

Hands in his pockets, Kakashi cleared his throat to wave off the intended embarrassment, and began to speak. "With your permission Hokage-sama, I wish to have Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha as my students," the masked Jonin stated. It was at this statement of choice that raised immediate protests among some of the other shinobi present, mostly from those who were most eager to have either of those three as their students. The Hokage looked across the crowd, to see several of these ninjas step forward to make their displeasure soundly local.

"You can't just have the three best Genin on your team Kakashi! That's unfair for the rest of us!" a known spiky haired ninja in the back shouted.

"Balancing out the team by putting all the good apples in one basket isn't going to cut it!" another said, walking up to the ninja and poking in his direction.

"I agree! You can't put all the best into one team! That's just dividing the rest of the class from them," another male Jonin shouted. "That's labeling…"

"And what makes you think we're categorizing our students now?" Sarutobi asked, silencing the outcries of the surrounding ninja. The old man groaned and laced his fingers together, keeping his eyes locked on the group in front of him. "Saying that one is stronger then another is understandable amongst two different parties. But by teaming up our students, we're eliminating the need for individual strengths alone, so that we can say that each team is as equal as the next, and that all members within that team are functioning comrades who can rely on each other, and forget about their strength differences. In other words, the three members of that team still count on the other team member for support. So let's knock off all these arguments about who the best students are. You all make it sound like the others are unwanted…"

Lowering their heads in shame, those ninja who spoke out against this decision of Kakashi backed down into the shadows, leaving only a said few still standing in the midst of the Hokage. Clearing his throat, Itachi stepped forward and, as per habit, placed his hand through the divide in his collar and rested it there.

"I still believe though that someone else besides Kakashi should have the honor of teaching these three," the Uchiha clan member stated, thinking of the betterments for his brother, and making the decision that would be beneficial for everyone else in this room. "Perhaps: someone who has not associated with them before and someone who specializes in dealing with their specialties, and can compliment them through sound teachings and observations, would be best." Kakashi glanced back at the Uchiha clan member and furrowed his brow at him, although he did feel that it was the most reasonable of decisions. This made the masked ninja feel a bit selfish on his part.

Asuma nodded his head. "I agree. Perhaps a senior Jonin with more experience…"

"A ninja who can listen, and has had much history with teamwork," Kurenai continued.

"I'll take them…"

"No way, Inaru! I'll be training them…"

"No, I will!"

It was then bickering and shouts of protests once again filled the crowds, as the Jonin suddenly began turning this lotto draw into a mob outbreak. Sarutobi lowered his head, whereas Kakashi slapped his hand against his head in distress. Itachi also lowered his head, but ran his hand through his hair as a sign of utter annoyance. But, just as the shouting was growing in volume and the small crowd in the Hokage's office was starting to become violent, a loud screeching of nails on a blackboard suddenly echoed around the room. It was so loud and so sharp that almost everyone was forced to cover their ears, and reeled in agony. Silencing themselves immediately, the groups turned towards the wooden wall near the back end of the room, where they saw a rather overshadowing figure standing.

The figure was clearly a woman, and almost everyone in the room stood to a fearful attention at the sight of her. Unlike all the other Jonin in the room aside from Kurenai, she wore an outfit totally outside of their usual attire. This included a flimsy mesh-turtle neck barely covered by a light brown Chinese martial arts vest with yellow linings, which was fitting tight around her chest area, and exposed a lot, not leaving much to the imagination. The most peculiar outfit components on her upper body however were the arm areas. On her hands, the woman wore thin, stone gloves, which are crafted and carved to flow nicely with her woman hands, and were comprised into individual pieces that allowed easy movement and flexibility of her wrist, hand and fingers. These earth mineral gloves started from her hands, and ended just below her elbows. Further down, beneath her exposed stomach, she wore a qipao like skirt (similar to Chun Li's, but with the top and bottom divided) that was maroon with light brown linings, and mesh stockings. She also wore cuffs around ankles, and was literally bare foot. On top of her sexy outfit, the woman was no doubt attractive in every aspect, right down to her curvaceous and perfect form. She also had long, raven black hair with her headband worn around her neck, and light blue eyes with no pupils.

It immediately occurred to everyone that she was blind. But without a doubt, she was one of the scariest women in this village.

Everyone immediately backed away, creating a path for the ninja as she hopped off of the table she was sitting on, and walked casually up to the Hokage's desk. With a grin on her face, she edged passed Itachi and Kakashi easily as if she could see them, and smirked down at the old man who was looking up at her with a very considerate look on his face.

"Ah…Ryu…still interrupting meetings I see…"

The woman nodded and thumbed at her chest, ignoring the feeling of Kakashi looking her over with silent admiration and interest.

"I'm your woman, Hokage-sama!" she exclaimed, placing her finger down on his desk in a stabbing motion. "I'll train these three Genin myself if that's what it takes to get these guys to shut up!" Sarutobi raised an eyebrow at her, finding her actions though provocative, very personality like. Ryu was perhaps the only ninja in this village to actually talk to the Hokage like this without fear of consequence.

"Hmm…are you sure you're up to it, Ryu?" the Hokage asked with concern. "These three, especially Naruto…they can be a real handful. I doubt even you'll be able to keep up with them if they're locked together into a team."

"Oh believe me, Hokage-sama," Ryu said, an evil grin forming on her face. "Whoever these three are, I'm sure I'll be able to straighten them out. You can count on it…"

Sarutobi sweated nervously. What was it about her statements that sent an incredibly cold chill down his spine?

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


End file.
